The Terror Birds
by Trudybird
Summary: The story follows a ten year old girl in a harsh world stuck in between a war of two tribes.
1. Chapter 1

I wake up sand and over hanging trees all around me. I stand up and take in my surroundings, the sea is beautiful, glimmering under the sunlight like a jewel. I smile and look down at my feet, _the sand is so warm and soft_. My smile quickly vanishes as I realise that I am wearing the simplest of rags that barely covers me.

I turn and spot a bush I race over to it and start to forage through it. I manage to find some fibre and a few berries, I then gather some stones that are scattered along the beach. I find a dead tree lay on the sand and begin to strip the thatch and branches from it. Using the materials I had gathered so far I made myself a pickaxe and a cloth shirt and trousers. _At least now I'm a bit more decent!_

I walk around for a bit, taking in all of the beautiful scenery. After awhile I find a small hut, the door missing and all of the contents emptied from the building. I stepped inside and looked about. _It seems habitable ..._ I gather some more stones and craft a campfire which I place outside the house out of the way. I fill it up with some firewood and begin crafting a door to keep wild animals and potentially hostile people out.

Just as I had finished crafting it I spotted something in the distance and began to panic. I quickly take up my pickaxe, _what good will this do against that?!_ I feel hopelessly weak as the raptor slowly starts to get nearer and nearer towards my position. _What do I do?_

I was just about to run into the hut when a spear came flying out of nowhere, landing in the raptors head. A few seconds passed and the raptor just stood there, not moving, then it collapsed and blood began to spill from the wound in it's head. A man wearing a ghillie suit came racing over. Stopping beside, the raptor he inspected the corpse closely, he grabbed the handle of the spear, placed one foot on the raptor's head and yanked hard. The spear must have been thrown with a lot of force since it wouldn't budge. The man applied more strength, pulling with all of his might. The spear slipped out of the raptors head and fell onto the sand, tainting it to a dark crimson.

I watch in shock, not knowing what to do as the man took out his pickaxe and started hacking at the dead raptor. _Just run ..._ I tell myself, _run away while he isn't looking!_ My legs are frozen, I can't move ... the man looks over at me and I start to shake nervously. _Run ..._ I order my legs ... they won't budge. The man stands up, his pickaxe in hand, covered in blood that was dripping onto the sand. I shake even more. The man takes a step towards me, _quick you need to run!_ I stumble backwards and start to sprint away.

I hear footsteps close behind me and know automatically that the man is following. I would turn and fight but I only have a pickaxe and he probably has more than a few more spears. I turn my head slightly to see how close the man was. _Damn, he's right behind me!_ I want to yell at him to go away, scream vile curses to my hearts content, but I hold it in, _now is not the time to be releasing your anger upon others!_ Besides, I need to save my energy for when I most need it. Just as I'm about to turn to face in front of me a sudden outburst of pain spreads throughout my legs as they are lifted from underneath me and my head hits the sand hard. I fall into unconsciousness ... _What the bloody hell?!_


	2. Chapter 2

I wake up in a house, but not the simple thatch one that I had happened upon earlier. This one is made of metal and larger too. I sit up and find myself in a bunk bed ... _I must have been dragged here!_

I look about and inspect my surroundings. In the corner of the room is a fridge, beside of which is a small, wooden box. A door at the other side of the room and a metal window next to it. _Looks like a jail!_ I walk over to the door and test it ... _locked_ ... I then make my way over to the fridge and box. On opening the fridge I find a lot of cooked meat and a canteen filled with water. _Well ... at least I won't go hungry ..._

I close the fridge and turn towards the box, I open it gingerly, half expecting something to jump out at me. However what I find is hide clothing folded up neatly inside. I leave the box as is and sit back down on the bed, _well this sucks!_ If I had my pick I could have tried to do some damage to the door, though it wouldn't have been much, it would have been something.

I hear footsteps outside the door. Locks being pulled back. I collapse and scrunch my eyes shut ... the door opens and someone walks in. There was a moment where all was silent. Then the footsteps sounded again, nearing the bed. When the footsteps stopped I could feel someone breathing on the back of my neck and I struggled to keep a straight face. "Aww", a male voice whispers by my ear, "She's not awake yet!". The person retreats from the room, shutting and locking the door behind him.

For quite some time I just lay there, curled up into a ball, with my eyes closed tight. I open them slowly, checking my surroundings to make sure I am alone. I then sit up on the bed and stare down at my feet. _I should think of a plan on how to get out of here before he comes back_ , I think logically.

I jump up from the bunk bed and race to the fridge, from the contents I take the canteen. I then go into the box and pull out the hide shirt. I then go up to the door and bang loudly. I then crouch down low beside the door, unscrewing the lid to the canteen. _And now, let's just hope he heard._

Sure enough heavy footsteps come pounding up to the room. The door swings open and a tall, skinny man comes in. His hair a dirty blonde and cut short. His eyes, brown. He is wearing hide trousers, a cloth shirt and a very confused look on his face. _That look is priceless!_ "Where did she go?", he asks himself. This is where I jump out from behind him, pushing him further into the room. Just as he is about to turn to face me, I chuck the water from the canteen at him and fling the shirt into his face. Whilst he is temporarily blinded, I close the door and bolt it shut.

It only took a few seconds for the loud shouts and banging to commence. I quickly look around for a hiding place. Even more footsteps alert me to more people coming to the man's aid. Looking around desperately, I spot another door and race towards it. I open the door and quickly race inside.

Looking about I realise that the room is filled with beer barrels. For some time I just stand there, bewildered by how much beer there was in just one room. "What happened?", I hear voices behind me, they must have let the man out. "The prisoner escaped!", comes a slightly angry response, "You mean that girl with the brown hair who Cornell brought back with em'?", comes a female voice. A silence fell over the corridors. I quietly hide behind a nearby beer barrel, falling back into the darkness.

The door swings open and the crowd floods in. The leader of which is the now red faced man who I had locked in the jail. "We know you're in here!", he shouted, I can't help but smiling at his contorted face. The crowd walks further into the room, passing me by. When I am sure they are all facing the other way I quietly creep out, none of them notice me since they are all inspecting the far corners of the room. One of which, a woman with short, black hair and brown eyes is gulping down a flask of beer and is clearly drunk.

Back in the corridor I find that it is deserted. I race down the corridor, my feet stinging every time my feet touch the cold metal floor. Eventually I reach the end of the corridor and slide down a ramp leading to ladders. I carefully climb down, cursing under my breath as my hands started to become clammy with sweat. When I reach the bottom I find it cold and start rubbing my arms for warmth.

In front of me is a reinforced wooden door. I walk towards it slowly and, when no one yelled out at me to stop, broke into a run. The door opens and I bump, headfirst, into something large and sturdy. I back away, rubbing my hurting nose. On looking up I find a man, tall and in shadow, wearing a ghillie suit. My body stiffens as I panic, _is he going to take me back?_

Slung over his shoulder is a dead dilophosaurus, _is he going to kill me?_ He stares at me for some time, then pushes past me and walks further into the room. I stand there, shaking from head to toe. _GET A GRIP!_ I bite down on my tongue to stop the shaking. The man puts the dead dilophosaurus down in front of a industrial grill and lays down a couple of spears down on the table next to it. He then turns to face me. But he doesn't move towards me or make any sign of wanting to attack. _Take the chance, run … I turn and exit through the door._

Outside it is late in the evening and I look around, not recognising any of my surroundings, _now how am I supposed to get home?_ I turn back around to see the man from earlier stood right behind me. I jolt back in surprise and too takes a step back in slight surprise of my reaction. For some time I stand there, staring at him as if we are having a contest of who can keep their eyes open the longest. I'm scared that if I close them he will sneak up close to me again. Voices emerge from the house, coming closer and closer. I race down the side of the house, the man not far behind. "Cornell's not gonna' be happy when he hears this!", says a fairly drunken sounding woman from inside, "Looks like he's already back!", says a happy sounding man, "What?", comes the voice of the dirty blonde man from earlier, "This isn't good!", says a quiet male.

 _I could run for it, but this guy would just follow me and probably kill me or bring me back._ "He's probably gone to find our smart little guest!", says the drunken woman, "And hopefully teach her a lesson!", added the dirty blonde man. Four people start coming outside and I shrink back into the shadows whilst examining them; the dirty blonde man, the woman from earlier who was drinking beer from a flask, a tall man with black hair and black eyes and a short, skinny man with light brown hair, light grey eyes and freckles. "Jesus! This time already?", exclaimed the woman, taking big gulps from her flask. "Yeah … it seems as though time has flown by!", agreed the dirty blonde.

He then turns to the freckled man, "Hey!", he beckoned, "gather some tintoberry for some dye would ya', Will?". The freckled man, known as Will, nods and hurries over to the nearby bushes, not far from where I stand. As soon as he reaches a rustling starts to occur, making Will stop still as he watches with frightened eyes. Silence fell as all eyes fell on the bush. Will edges closer to the bush, nervously looking around for some sort of threat. Something furry and fire-like zooms out, catching Will off guard. He lets out a high pitched girly scream and falls back onto his behind. The three burst out laughing, even the monkey stops and scratches it's head in confusion.

Will stands after a few moments, still shaking from his encounter. Just as he stands something is thrown at him and winds itself around him, pinning his arms back as if he were surrendering. "A bola?", Will inquiries in surprise. The tall dark man races forward, spear in hand, "RAPTOR!", he screams at the top of his voice. Will lets out another scream and legs it. _He moves surprisingly fast for a short guy!_

The two left are literally falling over with laughter. _Though I think the woman has passed out from how much she was drinking._ "CUT IT OUT PHIL!", shrieks Will in between his girly screams, "NEVER YOU HUMAN DISGUISED RAPTOR!", answers the dark man, known as Phil, as he chases Will. "I'M NOT A RAPTOR!", yells Will, "THEN WHY ARE YOU RUNNING LIKE THAT?!", responds Phil, "CAUSE YOU BOUNDED MY ARMS LIKE THIS!", Will yelps as Phil gains up on him.

At that moment Will bounds up right to me and lets out a shriek, "WOMAN!", he then spots the man behind me and an even louder shriek echoes, "MONSTER!". Will then gallops past us and screams, "RAPTOR!". Phil races past us up to Will's position, at the same time the dirty blonde man races to my position, "It's you!", he points rudely at me, his face red with anger, _bite his finger off and teach him a lesson!_ I don't since that would get me into even more trouble.

Phil comes back dragging a dead raptor as well as a paralysed Will. I try to back off from the scene but the man in the ghillie suit blocks my exit. His hands relax on my shoulders, reassuring me and riding me of my fears. I calm down and look up at the man with a firm confidence that makes him blush with embarrassment. "Don't mind Fred …", comes a deep yet kind voice from behind. The man had taken his mask off to reveal a tanned man with deep blue eyes and dark hair. "My name is Cornell and the drunken lass over there is Stephanie!", I am speechless, all I can do is stare up at Cornell, _somehow … I am no longer afraid._

"Welcome, to The Terror Birds!".


	3. Chapter 3

It has been two days since I first joined the Terror Birds. I'm still not used to this tribe but I have come to understand two things, the first is the jobs around the place, such as Cornell is the hunter, Will is the one who builds the houses and keeps everything in order, Phil makes the weapons and armour and Stephanie keeps the food and drink in stock. Fred is meant to be a scout but he mostly skulks around the place. The second thing have come to understand is to never sit by Phil during breakfast or any other meal at that.

I feel slightly sorry for Will as Phil misses his mouth, _again_ , and his fried egg lands on the top of Will's head. "Sorry about that Will!", Phil apologises, picking the egg off of Will's head, "It's okay, Phil", Will forgives him for the billionth time.I smile to myself whilst watching the two friends laugh while they eat.

Everyone in the tribe has their own nickname; Wimpy Will, Psycho Phil, Ballistic Stephanie and Flirty Fred. Cornell is the leader of the tribe but he doesn't have a nickname since no one has dared to give him one.

The room I am sat in is the kitchen; a large industrial grill next to the fridge which is being used by Stephanie, who is surprisingly sober and very grumpy. Fred comes into the kitchen and sits down beside Will, "Oi, Stephanie!", he beckons. Stephanie turn to face Fred her eyes piercing his skull, "Make me some egg will ya'?", his voice is dripping with ego.

Stephanie is clearly enraged by his request, she took a deep breath and pulled her mouth into a sweet smile, "Have you finished scouting the area for any intruders?", she inquires politely. Fred sends his fingers through his hair in an attempt to be cool, "Nope", this short answer makes Stephanie's face go red with rage. She pulls a bat from under the table that we're all sat at and swings it down on the table in front of Fred. Fred jumps in surprise at the sound of the crash, looking down at the bat in Stephanie's hand, _he looks terrified!_

"THEN YOU CAN MAKE YOUR OWN!", Stephanie yells, waving the bat around above her head. Fred holds his hands up in surrender, "Please calm down!", he pleads with her, "Remember, that bat is meant for emergencies!". I can't help but laugh to myself as Stephanie chases Fred out of the kitchen.

I look up at Will and Phil to see them smiling at me. For quite some time all we do is stare at each other. Suddenly Phil gets up and walks over to me, _he seems to be inspecting my face ..._ I in turn inspect his, his black eyes like pools of madness that are somehow hypnotic. His hair hung in shabby, long, dark locks. His skin a ghostly white, his dark, thick eyebrows gave him an evil but not sinister look. "You're observant!", Phil concludes and sits back down beside Will _. What?_

After we had ate Cornell calls us to his study. We gather around his desk and stare intently at him. "Sorry to have called you all here but it is a bit of an emergency!", Cornell apologises. Stephanie, who had restocked her flask with drink, giggles and waves her hand at him, "Think nothin' of it, Boss!". Cornell smiles at the drunk woman and then turns to the rest of us, "The Raptors-", a loud, girlish scream arouse from the room, everyone turns to look at Wimpy Will. "You okay?", Cornell asks him, Will goes a bright red but nods all the same, "Well then, the Raptors tribe has been hunting on our territory again and have left bear traps all over the woods, we've got to go disarm and remove them before they do any damage!".

 _Everyone looks angry for some reason..._ Phil suddenly jumps up and down giggling whilst shouting, "DOWN WITH THE RAPTORS!". Before I know what to do, everyone is chanting along, "DOWN WITH THE RAPTORS! DOWN WITH THE RAPTORS!". I look up at Cornell and find him looking down at me, a smile covering his face.

We all leave for the woods, our weapons in hand. Even though I have only been here for a little while, I have already grown a deep love for the woods, the peace and solitude that lies within. It enrages me to think that the opposing tribe has the guts to place down traps in such a beautiful place. We all split up into groups, I go with Phil and Will. Fred follows us. "What are you doing?", Phil inquires, Fred shrugs, "I'm not walking with that drunk!", he explains. Then again, if I was him, I'd keep my distance as well. Stephanie was grumbling about how she was going to cut Fred's head off and mount it on the wall like a trophy the next time she saw him.

We walk for what seems like hours but find no traps or sign of someone hunting. Suddenly a rustling occurs in a nearby bush. "Go show the monkey who's boss!", laughs Phil, Fred also smiles. _Somethings wrong ..._ I think to myself as Will laughs nervously and walks over to the rustling bush. But it's not until Will is a mere inch from the bush when I spot the curving outline of a claw. "Will get back!", I yell, as I do a pair of jaws lunge out, narrowly missing Will's head. Will lets out a shriek and falls backwards. "Connie!", Phil takes action, bounding past Will to battle our new threat. I perch beside Will who has fainted and is now drooling onto the ground. I ready my spear and inspect my surroundings to make sure that the enemy doesn't come racing at me.

The raptor that Phil is fighting is a light grey with a mo-hawk of light blue feathers. It's quicker than normal raptors, with much more precise attacks, aiming not for head and neck but for the shoulders, arms and legs. _It's trying to catch Phil off guard!_ "Watch your joints!", I warn, "It's trying to catch you by surprise!". Phil hears me and instantly becomes more wary, keeping a further distance. The raptor turns swiftly on it's heels, it's tail knocking Phil off of his feet and onto his back ... unconscious. I quickly leave my post and stand in the gap between the raptor and Phil.

Fred is stood by a tree watching in horror, but not interfering, _Coward!_ The raptor stares down at me, not moving. I find myself melting into it's eyes, they are kind, not aggressive, warm, not cold. I raise my hand and place it down on the raptor's nose ... _Is it purring?_ For a moment it is just me and the raptor, it was almost as if we are sharing our thoughts and even feelings. Then a loud screaming occurs, I turn my head to find Fred racing at us with an axe raised above his head. I want to throw the spear at him but before I can something golden flashes before my eyes and a girl, tall and fair is stood before me. Her hair long golden and wavy, her garments : a cloth crop top, it's sleeves cut short, cloth shorts that are dyed black, a leather belt, from which a small bag hung from, black hide boots and chitin armour shoulder plates.

The fair stranger points a long finger at Fred who slows to a stop in front of her. "How dare you hurt my Theaus!", her voice has a angry melody to it. Fred's face lights up and he drops his axe to the ground. He moves closer to the fair stranger, his face cool and his hands held in surrender. "Okay, just calm down!", just as Flirty Fred is about to place his hands on the fair stranger's shoulders she lifts her knee up sharply and Fred fall to the ground, yelping his pain. "Who do you think you are?", he demands, the girl turns to face me, her eyes a light blue with grey specks. "The names Kay!", she replies. _Wow ..._ "Kickass Kay!", The manic Laugh catches me off guard as Psycho Phil gets to his feet, looking slightly dizzy.

"Sorry about that!", Kay says, pointing towards the raptor, "Theasus gets spooked pretty easy!". Phil waves the apology away, "Just like our Wimpy Will, that was probably the most girlish scream he's given so far!", Phil giggles. Will wakes up and sees the raptor, at first he just stares, sleepily at Theasus, he then turns to Kay and lets out a scream, "PRETTY LADY!", he then faints again leaving Phil struggling for air. Kay laughs and turns to me, "It was lucky you warned him about Theasus, he wouldn't have a head right now if you hadn't have!". I feel sudden pride as I receive this complement. I feel an arm around my shoulder, "She is lucky!", Phil's voice boomed, "It was pure luck itself that your raptor didn't take her head off! She's our lucky clover!".

Others from our tribe soon surrounded us fro all sides after hearing the commotion. "Would you care to join our tribe?", Phil asks Kay. Kay shrugs, "Yeah, why not? Could be fun!". Phil is now holding me in a head lock and turns to face the rest of the tribe. "Listen up you lot!", He announces, "Kickass Kay and Connie Clover is on my team, alright?", a lot of moaning follows after Phil's speech but me and Kay just stare at each other, smiling, _I think we are going to be the best of friends!_


	4. Chapter 4

Back at the house Phil is teasing Fred who is sat at the table in the kitchen, looking quite grumpy. I am stood in the doorway beside Will who is a little shaky from his encounter with the "Pretty Lady". Even now I am struggling not to burst out laughing. Fred looks up at me and scowls, "This is your fault you know!", he accuses. I incline my head in confusion, _What the hell is he talking about?_ Fred turns his head to the right slightly in an attempt to make his glare more intimidating, "If you weren't in my way when I was trying to kill that raptor, I wouldn't have gotten hurt!". _Who the hell does he think he is?!_

Phil is death staring Fred, who doesn't notice since his eyes are transfixed on me. Will too looks slightly angry, but I am the one who talks, "Yeah, you was hugging a tree until I intervened, and the raptor would have tore you to pieces if Kay didn't teach you a lesson!", my words aren't kind but aren't mean either, "You getting hurt was your own fault so stop trying to pitch the blame on other people!". Fred's face goes bright red and he turns his head away in defeat. However, he can now see Phil, and the expression on his face is nothing to laugh at. Phil's hands are clenched into fists of fury. He stands up from his seat and makes his way over to Fred. Will races over but is not fast enough as Phil lands a swift and heavy blow to Fred's right eye.

There is nothing but silence while Phil continues to lay his heavy stare upon Fred who's face is going pale, making the black eye more obvious. "If it wasn't for Connie ... ", Phil says slowly in a deathly tone, "... I would have been torn to shreds!". Fred looks up to face Phil, only to find himself swallowed in the dark abyss of madness also known as Phil's eyes. "And do you think that a raptor would ignore the puny human shaking like a fool whilst trying to climb a tree?", Phil laughs, but not in a funny way, Fred looks at the floor in guilt.

I feel uneasy and I want to back away from the scene ... find somewhere to be by myself. But Will has moved slightly back so that if I back away ... I'll bump right into him. _What do I do?_ I feel like I'm being trapped in a cage with a pair of angry bulls who could maw at a blink of an eye. Just before another outbreak could begin, Kay comes up behind Will. She peers over Will's shoulder and smiles, "Whatcha' all doin'?". Will lets out a loud shriek which signals Fred to look away, hiding his new injury. Phil smiles up at Kay, "Nothing much, just a little man to man talk!", as Phil says this, Fred's face goes red with embarrassment. Kay looks a little confused and shakes her head, "Okay then...". She then looks down at me, _Save me,_ my eyes plead.

"I'm actually here to ask Connie if she would like to help me feed Theasus", Kay says with a gentle smile, "So far you are the only person, besides me, who Theasus will trust!". Will's eyes become large with fright at the raptor's name. I nod, happily accepting the opportunity to get away from the aggressive atmosphere forming around me.

The stables, right next to the house had been built in a rush so it is small and made of wood. Will had given it a coat of red paint to make it more "Barnly" and the roof had been made of thatch. It is rather cosy inside, and more home like than the house. Theasus has his own pen, within' the barn, at the back. I help Kay feed Theasus dodo meat which Cornell had brought back home with him early this morning. While we feed Theasus Kay chats with me, "So how did you get into the tribe?", she asks, "I mean, it's a bit rowdy for a little kid like your-", "I AM NOT LITTLE!", my outburst caught both Kay and Theasus by surprise as they stare at me. I'm not sensitive about my height, it's just that don't like the idea of being weak and vulnerable. Theasus nudges me with his nose, trying to calm me. I pat him gently on his back which somehow soothes me. Kay ruffles my short brown hair, "Sorry, kiddo", she apologises, "But how did you get into the tribe?". I shrug, "Cornell found me while he was out hunting and brought me back with him!", I explain, Kay nods her understanding.

We finish feeding Theasus and start to head for the double barn doors. But two men are now stood in the way. One with a dark pink Mohawk and dark brown eyes, short and skinny with greyish skin and piercings in his left eyebrow and right side of his bottom lip. The other one has a light green Mohawk, is quite tall and burly with slightly tanned skin, light brown eyes and piercings in his right eyebrow, left nostril, right bottom lip and left ear. They are both wearing hide trousers, boots and cloth shirts. They look me and Kay over and then inspect the rest of the barn. _Who the hell are they?!_ The man with the pink Mohawk spots Theasus in his pen and laughs, "Got some Raptor wanna' be's ere', man!", he scoffs. The man with the green Mohawk laughs, his tongue sticking out to reveal yet another piercing. After awhile they stop laughing and the man with the pink Mohawk walks forward, "Okay ladies", he says, edging closer to Kay, "All raptors belong to the Raptor tribe, so hand em' over!". I begin to shake with rage as I tighten my fists into balls of fury and step in front of Kay just as the men are about to reach her.

The man with the pink Mohawk looks down at me, his once toothy grin, a frown filled with disgust. "Theasus is ours, now go away!", I yell. _If this guy attacks me I should be able to take him down easily ..._ "That's cute kid!", the man with the green Mohawk and too many piercings steps forward, an amused smile on his face. He raises his fist and back hands me with such force that I am sent flying, hitting the wall of the barn hard. I let out a moan of pain and clutch my head where I had been hit. Both of the man burst out with laughter. But the laughs soon cease as Kay unsheathes her dual machete knives, her eyes wild with anger. Kay swing once, trimming the very top of the green Mohawk off of the burly man's head. "I'M GONNA' SKIN YOU ALIVE!", she yells. The two men race out of the barn in fright as Kay lunges after them.

Theasus thrashes about in his pen, desperate to be a part of the action, as I listen to the girlish screams of the two men as Kay shouts even more deathly threats at them. I slowly sit up, feeling light headed and hurting all over. I feel angry with myself, _why couldn't I protect myself? Why am I so weak?_ I stand up and painfully wobble over to the doorway. Psycho Phil had stopped Kay from kickin' ass and is now acting as a barrier between the two mean and 150 cm of pure fury. They are also joined by two others, an old man with dark skin and dark grey cropped hair and a boy around my age with tanned skin and dark hair cut just above his shoulders. Both of the men have misty grey eyes which leads me to believe that they are related. They are all talking, Phil speaks calmly while Kay is yelling in an angry while glaring savagely at the two men with Mohawks. The old man listens while death staring the two men with Mohawks who are shaking with fear. The boy simply listens whilst watching the older man out of the corner of his eye. Will is also there, looking very wary of Kay who is thrashing the air with her machete knives almost as though she is demonstrating what she'll do to the men.

Kay then says something that makes Phil's eyes go wide. They all turn to stare straight at me. Phil mumbles something and Will races into the house. I look down at my feet and find myself peering at my reflexion in a puddle. My eyes a dark green, hair short and brown, skin light but not kind of dark red liquid is oozing down the side of my head. _Is that blood?_ On looking up I can now see Phil who has now got the man with the green Mohawk lifted up into the air by the collar of his shirt. But my view is soon blocked out by Cornell who lifts my off the ground and into his arms before carrying me inside the house.

 _I wish that were me beating them up ..._


	5. Chapter 5

Inside the house, Will tends to my head, cleaning up the blood and covering the cut with bandages. Cornell is stood not far away, watching as Will skillfully wraps the bandage around my head. "You'll have to come to me to get the bandage changed tommorrow morning!", he tells me, disposing of the blood soaken cloth. The bandage is itchy and it takes a lot of restraint to not just rip it off. I hear footsteps behind me and Kay comes in with Phil and the older man and boy from earlier. Fred is in the doorway looking slightly pissed off. Phil and Kay stand at either side of me. Kay places a hand on my shoulder and smiles down at me, "Sorry I didn't stop that git from hitting ya'!", she apologises. Phil ruffles my hair gently, "Sorry I didn't beat em' up sooner!", he laughs. The older man also steps in front of me with a guilty look on his face, "I'm sorry, miss, about my men's behavior", he says, "My name is Owen and this is my son Jack.", the boy comes to stand right in front of me. "To show just how much we regret what has happened", Owen continues, "We want to give you one of our birds.".

"Whats goin' on down ere'?", everyone turns to find Stephanie wobbling into the room ... _drunk!_ Her eyes fall on me and she automatically goes red in the face. She reaches out and grabs Fred by the collar of his shirt, "DID YOU HURT THE KID?!", she yells at him. Kay is about to explain when Phil shakes his head at her, "Yeah ...", he says slowly, "He gave her a proper thrashing before you came in!". "RIGHT!", Stephanie points at Will, "EMERGENCY BAT!". Will reaches under the table and pulls out the bat I had seen yesterday, this time with loads of big nails sticking out of it, _Looks like Stephanie upgraded it!_ Fred slips out of Stephanie's grip just as the bat is handed to her and races off out of the house. Stephanie lives up to her name and goes ballistic, swinging the bat every time she got near enough to Fred to do so. We all turn back to face Owen and Jack as if what just happended is completely normal for us even though they are staring bewildered at where Stephanie and Fred once stood.

Owen clears his throat and nods at Jack who steps froward. He reaches into his satchel and pulls out an argentavis egg. "We only breed the strongest and the fastest of our birds", he says as he passes me the egg. "I'll help you hatch it, Connie!", Phil volonters. I can't help but stare at the blue and white egg, trying to imagine what kind of bird is inside. _Is it beautiful? Is it a girl or a boy?_ Cornell leads Owen and Jack to his office. Just before they leave, Jack turns and looks straight at me. His glance is quick but full of curriosity and worry. Kay pats my shoulder and Will fetches me a drink whilst Phil stands in the doorway, waching over me ... _Like a body guard_...

After Jack and Owen leave Will takes me to the barn and tells me to put the egg on a small table. Next to the table is a large metal box that lets out warm air, "It's the air conditioner", Will explains, "It makes cold air warm and hot air cool!". After the egg has been placed safely in the barn and Theasus's trough has been filled with fresh meat, Will leads me back to the house and into the dining room. There is music booming from some unknown source and everyone is dancing happily. Stephanie has laid the table with nothing short of a feast, "We allianced with the Raptor tribe", Phil explains having to shout to be heard over the music, "That Owen guy kicked those two fools out of his tribe right in front of Cornell!". Stephanie is drunk and wobbling around holding a flask, the emergency bat still in her right hand, nails scratching along the floor. Will looks quite unhappy about the scratches in the floor and wanders off ... _Probably to get materials to mend the damaged floor!_

Kay waves at me from a table where she, Cornell and Fred are all sat at. I sit beside her and start to feel slightly sleepy. Fred is swaying slightly which leads me to believe that he is drunk. In his left hand is a tankard of Ale. His eyes are transfixed on his tankard as he swirls the contents around slowly, almost as if he were in a trance. Cornell is talking to Kay, his ghillie mask removed and placed on the table. His deep blue eyes are tinted to a purple due to the light. Kay has a smile on her face and it is clear that she is enjoying herself. "So ...", Fred says slowly as he looks up at Kay with sleepy eyes, " ... Do you want to-", he is interrupted by a sudden hiccup which makes all of us jump. Kay's smile fades, "Yes, Fred?", she inquires after Fred takes another big gulp of his ale. "Do ... you ...", Fred hesitates as he gently strokes the side of his tankard with his left index finger, "... want to go ... out with me?". Kay looks pityingly at Fred and smiles gently at him, "Sorry ... but no ...", she answers. Cornell carries on chatting with Kay as if nothing just happened. I feel slightly sorry for Fred but I'm still angry at him for earlier so I don't comfort him on his latest rejection. A mere few moments later I am just starting to drift off to sleep when Fred suddenly bursts out crying. Kay stares in shock as Fred covers his eyes and sobs into his hands. I am woken fully up as Cornell pats Fred on the back gently. Fred ceises his tears and falls unconscious, collapsing on the cold floor at Cornell's feet. We all stare, bewildered, as Fred starts to snore. Cornell eventually pushes him away with the tip of his boot.

On looking back up at Kay, Cornell gives a bit of an awkward smile. "So were you always a lone wolf or was you at another tribe before here?", he asks. Kay hesitates, obviously thinking over her words carefully, "I was in a tribe when I was a kid ... I left at a young age ... though I can't remember the name of the tribe!", Kay shrugs and gives an uncertain smile. "What about your parents? Any family?", Cornell inquires, more curious now than before. Kay rubs the back of her neck, signalling how uncomfortable she is, "Uh ... we-", "Hey, Kay!", comes a cheerfull voice. We all turn to see Stephanie walking over holding two tankards, one of which is raised to her lips as she is gulping down the contents. Stephanie lays the other tankard in front of Kay, "You need to try it!", she says, nearly stepping on Fred's head. The tankard is full of a dark red liquid, Kay raises it to her lips and takes a small sip. She then turns to Stephanie and smiles, "It tastes great!", she exclaims, taking a much bigger gulp. Cornell stares at the tankard but only realises what it is when Kay starts to sway from side o side. Stephanie laughs and gives Kay some more wine, "Drink to your heart content!", she says in a sing-song voice. Fred wakes up, he sees Kay and races up to her. When Will comes back he sees Fred hugging Kay from behind crying "I love you Kay! I love you!". Kay is still drinking the wine despite Cornell telling her to put the tankard down.

Halfway through her second tankard, Kay falls unconscious and Cornell lifts her into his arms ... Fred still hanging on. Me and Stephanie try to yank him off but his grip is too strong. Out of the corner of my eye I see Will looking very annoyed at Fred.

"Pete ... Sam ...", Kay mumbles in her sleep, Cornell looks down at her to find a single tear run down her flushed cheeks. Fred goes unconsious again and nearly crushes me and Stephanie. Will and Phil picks him up, his right arm over Phil's shoulder and his left on Will's. They follow Cornell out of the dining room and out of sight. "So...", Stephanie looks at me, then, holding out her tankard of Ale, says "Wanna' try some?". "Forget it Connie!", Phil shouts just as I'm about to reach to grab it. _Killjoy!_

The next morning Fred comes into the kitchen and we instantly start laughing. Written across his forehead is, "BRAINLESS DUFUS" all big and black. He walks past, looking confused. Phil punches him in the back and Fred lets out a painiced yelp. He turns to face Phil and Will takes his chance to give him a good kick. Fred confront Will and I charge up, stamping hard on his feet. He goes to grab at me and Kay punches him hard in the shoulder, making him squeal in pain. Cornell holds his hand up to signal that it is going too far. Fred turns to face Cornell, hurt and still confused. I look up at his back and struggle not to laugh, "PLEASE DONATE PAIN". Will and Phil had done this whilst Fred was unconsious... _Genious!_ Stephanie lets out a war cry and races at Fred with the emergency bat. Fred shrieks and races out of the kitchen, closely followed by Stephanie.

Kay is stood right next to me, whilst she is talking to the others I inspect what looks to be a tattoo, writing ... that I can't understand, "Spes enim sequitur verum bellator". _What does it mean?_


	6. Chapter 6

I haven't kept much count on how many days have passed. But so far everyone has been nice to me, Kay and I have bonded quite nicely and Phil is teaching me how to fend for myself. I doubt it would be the same if they knew about ... no! I refuse to think about it! But every time I look into his eyes, it reminds me of his ... I know I have to tell Cornell one day, it'll get the whole tribe into trouble otherwise. I'm just wondering if they'll want to know me afterwards. I rub my bandaged arms as I remember the pain. Luckily the others seem to think that they are just to keep me warm. As long as they don't find out the truth ... I'll be fine ... _I hope_.

In my room I am holding a pencil which is hovering over the paper that Cornell gave me. Said that if it wasn't too much trouble he'd like me to write down anything from my past into a report for him so that he can make sure that he hasn't kidnapped me from my family. I know what to write ... but there is something stopping me from writing ... I can't write. Or read actually. It's so embarrassing that I'm blushing my head off. I take a deep breath and decide to leave it for later. But just as I'm about to put the paper away ... it comes back to me ... the thing that haunted me all those four years ago. I quickly sketch the image in my head onto paper. A big black skull now fill the once blank piece of paper. Cracks within the bone below the right eye and running down the left side of the top lip and into the tooth. _This ... is what killed my parents ... no ... this is nothing to do with ... him! He could have spared them ... they would still be alive if it wasn't for him!_

I find myself falling into a hysterical laugh as tears roll down my face. Put the pencil down ... but I'm too far gone ... my grip on the pencil tightens and I begin to draw more of my memories as each pops into my head. The sword, the blood, their dead bodies, the men as they walked away ... the black skulls on their backs. But the most detailed one is of his face ... a skull mask made from human bone. _How many people did he kill_ , I think to myself as I stare into his black, wild eyes ... _and why didn't he kill me?_ I suppress the memories and wipe away my tears. I stuff the pieces of paper and pencil into my large wooden box at the end of my bed and head for the metal door. On opening the door I receive a shock when I find Kay stood in front of me. We both jump back as a shriek escapes my lips. We stare at each other for some time, waiting for one of us to make the first move. We both burst out laughing. "Jeez!", Kay exclaims as she ceases to laugh, "You really know how to scare the life out of me!". Same here, I think to myself, "So, I just wanted to tell you that Stephanie is looking for you!", "Okay, thanks!". I close the door behind me and follow Kay down the corridor.

Stephanie is stood outside looking very smug with herself. "Is that everyone?", she says when she catches sight of me and Kay, I notice Will and Fred sat on a log near to Stephanie and Phil stood right to her. Stephanie has a rather suspicious grin on her face. "Okay then, I asked you all here because all the other tribes have some kind of symbol on there clothing and weapons but we don-", "And that matters why?", Fred interrupted, "Cause all the other tribes are easily recognised, when we are seen we want to be feared as well as recognised straight away!". Phil nods with his chin in his right hand. Stephanie pulled a bag from behind her back and began shuffling through it, "I have made something for each of you!", she says with a cheery look in her eye, "Kay, I made you this!", Stephanie pulls out a black hide jacket and hands it to Kay. "Thank you!", Kay thanks as she slips off her shoulder armour and slips on her new jacket. Stephanie rummages through her bag again, "Okay, who's next?", she pulls out a small box and looks at it for a while before blushing and dropping it back in the bag, "Not that one!", she says before diving into the bag. She now pulls out a light blue scarf and hands it to Will who takes it gingerly, "I noticed that there tends to be a lot of sawdust and general dust whenever you're building stuff so I thought that a scarf might come in handy, and blue is you're favourite colour!". Will's eyes light up and he quickly wraps it around his neck. Kay looks over at him, approval in her eyes. I try to hold back giggles, it's obvious that she likes him! As soon as Kay looks away Will's eyes turn to Kay, sending them up and down and obviously admiring her new look.

"Okay ... Phil!", Stephanie pulls out a compound bow with some metal arrows, "I know how much you missed you're old bow so I made you a new one and also made a few minor adjustments so it'd be easier to use!". Phil takes the bow and pulls back the bow string with ease ... suddenly the surroundings around me change. I'm in a forest. Phil is suddenly wearing a skull mask and stood behind him is a small wooden house. His eyes were wild and blood thirsty as he pulled the bow string back and let the arrow soar. The sound of metal piercing flesh and a blood curdling scream made my hands go to my ears ... stop ... please ... just stop it!

"Connie?", as I look up I find Phil looking at me with a worried expression. I smile at him to show him I am okay, "Headache!". Phil nods and sits back down, bow and arrows at his feet. Stephanie now pulls out a whip with a black handle. She hesitates and stuffs it back in the bag. "Who's is that?", Kay asks, "Wouldn't want to ruin the surprise!", her eyes are full with evil intention as she lands them on Fred who seems to cripple under the gaze. She pulls out a pair of knuckle dusters, "It's for close encounters only!", Stephanie says as she hands them to a very excited Fred. Fred takes them and slips them on. He take a couple of swings at the air, then takes them back off ... show off! Well that just leaves me ... I guess. Stephanie walks over to me and smiles, "I made these myself so I hope you like it!", she pulls a dark green slingshot and a terror bird teddy bear. I take the slingshot and slip it into my belt. I cuddle the teddy tightly, it's brown feather soft and fluffy against my cheek.

"Thank you!", I say to Stephanie who smiles down at me, "Your welcome!". I look up at Stephanie but instead of her cognac brown eyes looking down at me, there are emerald green eyes of a woman with long flowing light blonde hair. Her smile gentle and warm. "If it makes you smile then I'm happy!". I blink and the woman disappears, Stephanie looks worriedly at me and I realise that I'm crying. I quickly wipe the tears away and smile up at her, "I'm going to put this away in my room!". I run away before Stephanie can ask whats wrong. Why does she remind me of mum?

In my room I am sat on my bed. TB, the teddy Stephanie made, clutched tightly to my chest. I don't want to remember ... but I don't want to forget. It's because of what happened back then ... that I am here now. I take a deep breath and lay TB down next to me. I slide off of my bed and walk over to the box at the end of my bed. I get the paper and pencil and sit back on my bed. I draw her ... my mother ... her smile ... the loving look in her eyes. I draw father as he holds out his sword ... to protect us. I now draw ... him ... as he pulls back the bowstring and lets the arrow fly. I don't draw where it lands. I know I'm crying but I don't care. It's not like anyone will see me ... "Hey, Conn-", the door opens and Kay steps in. I quickly stuff the papers under the pillow and wipe my tears away. Kay simply stands there, her face full of worry ... I wish people would stop looking at me like that! "Um-", Kay hesitates as she takes a steps towards my bed. "Sorry Kay, what did you want?", I ask, jumping up off the bed, "D-did you want to feed Theasus and Lightning with me?". I nod and walk past Kay and out out of the bedroom. I few seconds later Kay emerges from the room holding a piece of paper ... the one with the black skull.

She holds it up with an angry expression on her face, "Where did you see this?". I say nothing, I stare at my feet. I don't want her to hate me! "Tell me where you saw this!", Kay demands, her voice and tone impatient. My hand grasps my right arm just below the elbow. I feel bad but I can't tell, I can't let her know what happened seven years ago ... "TELL ME!". I jump as Kay screams at the top of her voice. Tears roll down my face as yet another memory comes to mind. I am in a stone building, stood next to a dark man in a skull mask ... him ... I'm crying. The man looks down at me and smiles, "Again with the tears kid?", he laughs, "A weakling like you won't last 5 seconds out there!". I carry on crying and the man lets out a scoff, "Jeez kid, you're killing me!". The man takes his mask off to reveal his face ... Phil's face. "Listen kid, your mommy and daddy were too weak to look after you ...", Phil picks me up and sits me on his lap. "So I'm looking after you now ... Kay?". I whimper as Kay is now stood in front of me, her once angry expression now filled with pity. "Look", she says, "I'm sorry I snapped at you, I just ... I've seen this symbol before and had to know where you had seen it-". I can't keep it in any more, it hurts ... "They ... k-killed them-", Kay looks into my eyes, "Killed who?". "They killed my mom and dad!", with those words I feel a little better, but I can't just stop here. "I was three when they did and it was last month that I escaped!". Kay is silent for awhile and I panic, _what if she hates me now?_

I feel myself being dragged into a hug and a sudden wave of relief washes over me. I can hear Kay crying and I can't help but hug her back as we both cry into each others shoulders. "They killed my family too!"...


	7. Chapter 7

Me and Kay wipe away our tears and make our way to the kitchen. Stephanie is singing while cooking a cake. Fred is swinging left and right, punching the air with his knuckle dusters in an attempt to impress someone. "Oh you two!", Stephanie spots us, "Cornell is talking to some people out front, says their tribe name is ... Black Skull?". My hand trembles and both me and Kay race towards the door. Outside are five men dressed in red with black skulls on their cloth shirts. "Please leave my tribe alone!", Cornell is trying to be peaceful, Phil is stood next to him and Will is nowhere to be found. "We just want ta know if you've seen er or not!", says the leader of the the group ... Dennis? "I've already told you, none of us have seen her!", Phil seems angry ... maybe he's changed. "N I think ya lyin ... just let us talk to the rest of ya tribe, if they all say the same thing as ya, we'll be on our way!". Dennis catches sight of me ... "Connie?". Oh god no! Dennis smiles, "I knew ya lot were lyin, Connie ya brat c'mere!". Kay grasps my hand tightly.

Cornell turns to face me, "You know them?", I look down at the floor ... not this again! "Of course she knows us, she is in our tribe after all!". Cornell simply stares at me, Phil also stares but it is more of horror than anything else ... he remembers me! "Connie ... c'mere!", Dennis hisses. I suddenly remember when he used to beat me, he once got so angry that he cut my arm a couple of times ... it was just before Phil disappeared. My feet start to move and I find myself walking towards a smug looking Dennis. But I am held back by Kay who is death staring Dennis. "How about you tell us what is really going on here!", she yells at him. Dennis looks shocked, but shock quickly turns to anger, "You told em?!". All five men begin to chatter angrily amongst each other, "Wait until Boss hears about this!", "You're gonna get such a beating!". I look up at Kay who is staring straight at Dennis, her eyes filled with rage. "Listen lady-", Dennis says as his blue-green eyes meet Kay's grey flecked blue eyes, "I don't know what the kid's told ya' ... but they're a liar!". Kay looks even more angry, "I doubt it!", she snaps at Dennis who looks taken back, "What are ya talkin' about -", Dennis is losing his cool. "Well it isn't the first time you've killed a little girl's parents ... now is it?", that's right ... Kay's parents were killed too! Dennis looks panicked, "You crazy bitch!", I hear someone yell, Kay's grip on my hand gets tighter. "You and you're pathetic excuse for a tribe murdered all of my family then three years later ... you killed Connie's parents!", Dennis smiles, "So you're a survivor then?", he laughs. He looks Kay up and down, "You look just like er!", the looks in Dennis's eyes are of dirty intention, "You've got the same look in you're eyes that she had ... just before I killed her!". Kay lets go of my hand and lunges at Dennis. Cornell stops her, grabbing her arm and holding her back.

There is a rise of laughter from the Black Skulls. Phil's face is dark, I know he is angry but I don't know if it is because of me or them. It's just now that I notice something. I look over Dennis's shoulder at one of the men who isn't laughing. His hair is a golden blonde, his eyes are pure blue. He looks a little like Kay. Kay also sees him, at first she looks confused, then her face hardens, "YOU TRAITOR!", she yells at him, "SAM! YOU TRAITOR!". The man ... Sam, looks uncomfortable. He looks down at his feet. Kay continues to scream at him, "WHY DID YOU LEAVE US?", "WHY DIDN'T YOU COME BACK?", "WHY DIDN'T YOU HELP US?", "WHY DID YOU LEAVE US TO DIE?", "YOU BETRAYED US!". Sam looks up at Kay, he tries to say something but another man cuts him off. "You brother has picked his side!", the mans voice is gruff, his hair dark and just above his chin. His eyes are a yellowish-brown ... Ben. "He made the right choice joining us!", I recognise Ellis's voice as he moves to stand next to Sam. "That tribe full of so called 'warriors' was a bit babyish for our Sammy!", says Tristan, a middle aged, bleach blonde, chocolate eyed man. "You're brother is with the real warriors now!", Dennis grins evilly at Kay.

Kay laughs, "He ...", Kay looks Sam in the eyes, "... is no longer my brother!". Shock fills Sams face, "Ka-", Ellis cuts Sam a deathly grim stare. "Well then ...", Dennis says loudly, taking a step towards me, "...is this little family reunion is over ... we'll just be taking what is ours!". The look in Dennis's eyes is of a predator looking over it's prey. "I don't-", my voice can hardly be heard. Dennis looks annoyed, "Sorry, what was that?". I look over at Kay to find her struggling to hold back tears. They upset her! They upset my friend! A surge of anger fills me and it overrides my fear of Dennis. "I DON'T BELONG TO YOU!", I yell. Dennis is taken by surprise and he stares at me for a while before turning red in the face. "You ungrateful little bitch!", Ellis spits, "We fed you! Kept you alive and this is how you repay us?!".

Phil suddenly walks towards me and grabs my left arm. I freeze as he pulls the bandages off, revealing my scars ... the ones Dennis gave me. Dennis, Ellis, Tristan and Ben all look panicked while Sam is still looking down at his feet and doesn't notice. "I suggest-", Cornell turns to death stare the Black Skulls, "-you leave now ... before I let my tribe sharpen their blades on you!". Dennis takes a step back, "Y-you think you s-scare us?", he stammers. Before anyone else could say anything, a loud shrieking noise alerts us to a raptor. Theasus races out of the barn, almost flying as he charges at the Black Skulls. Lightning is not far behind, swooping down to fly along side Theasus, his light blue and white feathers a blur as they race to their two mistress's aid. Phil bursts out with laughter as the five men run away in pure fright as the raptor and the bird close in on them. Theasus trudges over to Kay and rubs his head against her's to calm her down. Lightning lands in front of me and allows me to stroke his feathers as I look into his brown eyes. Will comes out of the barn looking very shaken. "Sorry!", he says when he reaches Cornell, "I heard some pretty loud shouts so I let Theasus and Lightning out of their pens!".

Kay walks over to Will and hugs him, "Thank you!". Will turns a hot pink, "You're welcome!". Kay walks off, grabbing my hand and pulling me along with her. Cornell follows us. Cornell lets Stephanie know whats happened who makes Kay and me something to eat. After we both have ate, Kay takes me back to my room. We talk for awhile, I let her see all of my drawings and I even tell her how I can't read or write. When she leaves to go to her room, I fall asleep in bed. I wake up a few hours later to find a dark shadow standing over me. They grab my right arm and yank the bandages off so that both my arms are bare. Just above my wrist are marks ... like teeth marks ... but bigger. "I knew it!", comes Phil's voice, "from the moment I saw you ... I just knew!". Through the shadow I can see Phil's face, tinted with guilt and sorrow. "Please-", begs, "please forgive me for leaving you there?". Is this really the man who killed my parents?

Despite how much I try to hate him, I find my self pitying him. I start to remember back to when was four years old ... Phil had fallen asleep on one of the wooden chairs. He had his head lay on the table next to an empty tankard. I picked up the tankard and was about to walk off to refill it with some water when I start to hear sobbing. I turned to find Phil crying in his sleep. "I'm sorry-", he whimpered, "-I'm so sorry!". I crept closer. Phil's eyes opened wide ... his eyes that were once wild with blood lust, were now watery and full of sorrow and guilt. I remember hugging him out of pity, rubbing his back gently as he sobbed to his hearts content. I stand up on my bed and wrap my arms around Phil's neck. I can't let what happened to my parents go ... but I can tell he regrets what he did. "I forgive you!", at these words Phil begins to sob harder as he hugs me back and buries his head in my shoulder. Maybe ... he really didn't mean to do it ...


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Kay holds my hand as we walk down the corridor. It's early in the morning and the cold air gives me goosebumps on my arms. Both me and Kay are silent. I try to think of something to say but ... I can't think of any good topics. Kay came to my room this morning and told me that Cornell told her to bring me to his office. _What if they are trying to get rid of me?_ I'm scared that they don't like me any more but I don't want to say anything to Kay in case I make it worse. As we reach Cornell's office Kay lets go of my hand to knock twice on the door. We wait but no reply comes. Kay knocks again, a little louder this time. Still no reply. Kay open the door and peers in, she grabs my hand again and pulls me along gently as she walks into Cornell's office.

The left side of the room is littered with bookshelves and paper. The right side of the room is littered with large boxes and weapons mantled onto the wall. In the middle of the room, in front of a large window, is a desk with books and paper stacked neatly on top of it. Cornell is nowhere in sight ... _where is he?_ Me and Kay stand there for a while. When Cornell doesn't come Kay walks over to inspect the books. I watch as she shuffles through some old looking maps. I decide that I might as well look around until Cornell comes back. I walk over to the wall full of weapons and inspect each weapon carefully. I stroke the blade of a black bladed sword, puzzle over a dark green pike twice the size of myself and hold a gun of some kind, it's small and a light green. I don't think it's loaded. I put it back into it's box and move onto the next one. In a box full of straw I find a crossbow loaded with a single arrow, the crossbow is a dark green while the arrow is black. I pick it up and find myself aiming out of a window.

That tree seems far away ... I wonder if I could hit it ... "What do you think you're doing?!", I spin round, my finger twitches, it is enough pressure to make the arrow go spiralling. The arrow narrowly misses an angry looking Cornell and lands in the door. I look round for Kay and find her struggling not to laugh while hiding her face in a book. I look back at Cornell to find him struggling not to smile. Phil walks through the door. He sees me with the crossbow, sees the arrow in the door and is now looking back and fourth between me and the arrow. Now realising what just happened he too burst out with laughter ... _did they plan this?_ Now sat at his desk, Cornell is still smiling, "Well ... I called you two here to discuss what happened yesterday", we all go quiet, "It was very dramatic and I would like to know what exactly it was about!". Phil is stood beside Cornell looking straight at me. Cornell looks at Kay, "You first please!". Kay takes a deep breath, "I was born into the Sabertooth tribe ...", Kay is cut off as Phil speaks up, "Do you mean the legendary tribe of warriors?". Kay nods, "My mum was the leader of the tribe, Calla Agua. My father died when I was younger ...", I can tell Kay is trying her best not to cry, "When I was nine my tribe was attacked by the Black Skull tribe. No one except me and my brother survived ...". Phil has gone distant as if remembering something. "I'm sorry about that ...", Cornell says, watching as Kay forces a straight face. "What about you?", Cornell now turns his gaze to me. Both me and Phil look at each other in a panic ... I don't want him to get into trouble. Kay rubs my shoulder, "I can tell him if you want?", I look up and smile at her, "I think I should tell all of the details this time". I glance at Phil and feel slightly relieved when he nods at me. "My name is Connie Fidelis. I never was in a tribe until now. My parents lived in the woods and never really ventured past the woods. When I was three my mum sent me to get some berries. I couldn't find any near the house so I went to the beach", I feel a tinge of pain from my right arm. "In one of the bushes was a hidden bear trap ... it hurt ...", Kay looks horrified. "A man from the Black Skull tribe came and helped me. He also followed me home.", Cornell processes what I've just said before nodding for me to continue. "My dad died trying to protect us, my mum tried to lead us away using a underground tunnel leading to the beach. She got shot ...", I pause as I remember sitting beside her asking why she wouldn't wake up. "I was taken into the tribe as a slave ... to the one who killed my parents. That is until he died, I then became the property of the tribe leader ...", I can see Phil looking down at the floor in guilt. "I had just escaped the Black Skulls when you found me!". Cornell looks up at me after a few moments of silence, "Could you tell me any names ... maybe the name of the one who killed you're parents?". I look up at Phil who lets out a sigh.

Phil smiles at me, "That would be me!", we all look at Phil, Cornell in shock Kay in anger and me in surprise. "It's a long story that me and Cornell should talk about alone bu-", "I suppose you know who killed my family as well! I could strangle you right now! I'll kill you with my bare hands!". Kay has her swords out and is about to charge at him when Cornell stands up. _Thank god!_ But Cornell grabs Phil by the collar of his shirt and pull him close, "YOU BLOODY BASTARD!". Now both Kay and Cornell are trying to murder Phil! I quickly race up to the three and try to push my way between them. Cornell lands a punch on Phil's face, sending him reeling backwards. I move in front of him with my arms wide open. "Please just hear him out!", I plead. Cornell looks down at me, "Phil was drugged when he did those things!". Phil looks surprised, "How did you know that?", he asks, "No one would be begging for forgiveness in their sleep the way you did if they meant to kill someone!". Phil's eyes water up as he pulls me into a hug. "Well do you know who killed my family too?", Kay seems calmer, "No, I wasn't in the tribe at that time", Phil says through tears. Cornell simply looks down at Phil with astonished eyes.

Will's second side

On the way out of the office I wait for Connie to come out before shutting the door. She and I walk side by side as we make our way to the kitchen for breakfast. She's quiet and so am I, I want to say something but no topics come to mind. When we reach the kitchen Stephanie, almost as if sensing our presence put two plates of fried egg on the table. Connie eats hers fast leaving no remains on her plate. _I'd feel sick if I ate that fast!_ "Thank you, Steph!", Connie thanks Stephanie before turning to me, "I'm going to feed Lightning and Theasus, okay?", I nod and carry on eating. When I am finished I thank Stephanie and go to find Connie. But I bump into someone on the way out the door. I look up to find a very red faced Will looking down at me with wide eyes. "Sorry, Will!", I say quickly as I back away from him, "I wasn't looking where I was going!". Will shakes his head, "I w-was actually l-l-looking f-for you!", he stutters, "I w-wanted to know i-if you'd l-l-like to go out with m-me?". Go out with Will? My hesitation makes Will get even more nervous, "Never mind, it was a bad idea!". I shake my head, "I think it's a great idea!", I assure him. _It would be a good way to escape from all this drama!_ Will smiles shyly, "Should we go now?", he asks, I nod.

We walk together out the house and towards the beach. As we walk, we talk, "What's you're colour?", Will asks me, "I like dark blue, you?", I reply, "Light blue". "What about animals, what kind of animals do you like?", Will moves a little closer, "I like raptors, kairukus-", "I love kairukus!", Will suddenly blurts. We stare at each other for a moment, "I'm sorry!", Will looks away from me as he blushes in embarrassment, "That was weird, wasn't it?". I giggle, "No it was cute!", I grab his hand and squeeze it gently. Will looks into my eyes and smiles out of pure joy. _He looks so handsome when he smiles, I sort of want to see it more!_ We both walk beside the sea holding hands until we can only just see the house in the distance. Will and I walk towards the woods. Will suddenly lets go of my hand and races into the woods. "Will, where are you going?", I shout after him, "Stay right there, I'll be right back!", he yells back at me. _What? What is he doing?_ I look about and see Fred walking my way with a tankard in his hand and wobbling all over the place, _he's drunk!_ I walk up to the edge of the trees and look about for Will. _I can't see him!_ Fred is getting closer so I decide to go look for Will. It doesn't take long before I notice him sat on the ground in a clearing holding his head and wincing as if in pain. "WILL!", I race over to him, "Are you okay?". I kneel down and grab his head to inspect him for any injuries. Will looks up at me with a smile on his face, "I'm fine, just got a brief headache, that's all". _His eyes are different now, more confident somehow._ "Here", he holds out some flowers, they are blue and so pretty! "Th-thank you-", I say as I take the flowers from him. "You're welcome, milady!", Will flashes a killer smile at me, _did he just call me ... "milady"?_ He stands up and offers me his hand. I hesitate, _this isn't like him, he is more like a gentleman now all of a sudden!_ But that smile of his is too charming and friendly for him to mean me any harm. I take his hand and he pulls me up into his arms. He embraces me with arms that are gentle and warm, like he's holding something fragile he's afraid to break.

Will takes my hand and tugs me along with him gently as he leads me out of the woods. "Will, are you okay?", I ask as we near the edge of the woods, "Of course", Will replies, "Why do you ask?". "It's just that you're acting strange-", Will stops and spins round. I suddenly find myself pressed against a tree with Will's face near to mine. "Jeez!", he exclaims, "Worrying about me like that, you really are as sweet as a candy apple!". I feel myself go red in the face, _a candy apple?!_ Will sniggers, "You're so cute when you're embarrassed!", he uses his thumb to stroke my cheek ... what is happening? Why is my heart beating so fast? I'm about to say something when Fred comes crashing towards us. He pushes Will out of the way, "Out the way wimp!". Will looks aggravated as he is pushed back away from me. Fred turns to me with a dizzy look in his eyes, "Hey there pretty!", he says taking a step towards me, "Are you chocolate?", he asks. "Um-", I try to move away but he blocks my way, "Cause I'm a chocoholic!". Fred now leans in for kiss, I can smell his breath, the alcohol is strong and makes me want to puke. But he is pulled back and I now find myself in Will's arms, _pressed against his chest I feel safe._

Fred is about to lung at us when Cornell crashes through the bushes. He sees Fred and his eyes harden. "Fred!", his voice is stern and angry, "Stop slacking off, you're meant to be scouting!". Cornell grabs Fred by his collar and lifts him off the ground, "Aaah!", Fred screams. "Please Kay!", he begs me, "Don't let the gorilla take me!". Cornell is obviously angered by this since he drops Fred to the ground and begins to prod him away with a spear. "KAY!", Fred yells as he stumbles backwards, "I LOVE YOU!". I look up at Will to find him grinning evilly at Fred, _what is he planning?_ He looks down at me and I find myself in a trance as my heart beats faster and faster still. He leans down and kisses me on the lips. I find myself unable to move as he pulls back as looks into my eyes with a cheeky grin on his face. _What just happened?!_

Steph's Confession

As it is getting late I begin making rare mushroom and dodo stew. Fred is the first into kitchen, he sits down at the table in a sulk. "What's the matter with you?", I ask as I place a bowl of stew and a tankard of some beer in front of him. Fred lets out a groan, "Cornell has got me cleaning out Theasus's pen for the next month!". "Why?", I ask with a smile on my face, "Cause I interrupted a so called date between Kay and Wimpy Will!". "You did what now?", I demand, slamming my hand down on the table, "I-I was d-drunk!", Fred tries to defend himself. I reach for the bat under the table but Fred is already up and out of the kitchen before I can teach him a lesson. Phil and Will now walk in, Will almost in tears. "Hey there Will!", I say as he sits down where Fred once sat. "How did you'e date go?", Phil sits down on Will's right with a smile on his face, "He kissed her!", Phil begins to laugh. I also laugh as Will goes bright red, "Kay'll hate me now!", he sobs. "Oh, and why is that?", I ask him, "Cause I said some really embarrassing things to her!", Will says through his tears. "What exactly did you say to her?", I inquire. Will stuffs his face in his hands and begins to sob, me and Phil both laugh at him. "Come on now, Lover Boy!", Phil pats Will on his back, "It can't be that bad can it?". Will looks up at me and Phil, "I had a headache!". Phil bursts out laughing and I soon follow.

Will has a split personality, a wimpy side and a more confident side. Whenever he has a headache his more confident self kicks in. Will runs out the kitchen and to his room. "So wheres Kay?", I ask Phil who shrugs. "She's in her room-", I turn to find Connie in the doorway looking very confused, "-holding her pillow and rolling all over her bed while giggling her head off!". Connie walks over to Phil and sits beside him. I put a bowl of stew and some water down in front of her, Connie instantly begins to eat. "What happened?", she asks, looking up at me with those big emerald green eyes. _So cute!_ I'm about to tell her when Phil shoots me a deathly glare, "We'll tell you when you're old enough!", he answers for me. Connie groans but carries on eating. I suddenly remember the gift in my pocket and quickly turn to Phil, "I've got to do something, can you make sure that Connie goes to bed please?". Phil nods and begins to eat Fred's stew. I race out of the kitchen and down the hallway. _I hope he's still there!_

I'm at Cornell's office the small box in my hands pressed to my chest. I had made this myself I have wrapped the in black paper and used a dark green ribbon to hold the lid onto the box. _What if he doesn't accept it? Just be strong Steph! I've put this off for far too long! If he says no then that's that ... but I don't know if I don't try ... right?_ I reach up and knock the door a couple of time in a sort of musical way. I compose my self, calming my heart ready to face him. I look down at the gift and smile, "I'm finally doing it!", I say to myself. "Doing what?", I look up to find Cornell looking back down at me with questioning eyes. I feel my face going red and instinctively hide the box behind my back. "N-n-nothing!", I stammer, _what am I doing?_ "What's that box?", Cornell asks, trying to peer around my back, "It's just something I found, i-it's rubbish!", _I. Am. An. Idiot!_ Cornell doesn't look convinced, he looks into my eyes and my heart starts to pound, "You don't look so good!", he says before taking a step closer. My heart beats faster as he leans close to me. He puts a hand on my forehead and his other on his own, my heart is jumping out of my chest. "hmm-", Cornell straightens up and looks me over, "Have you been drinking again?". _Well yeah I had a little, how else would I have had enough courage to stand in front of you like this?_ "Maybe a little ...", I admit. Cornell lets out a sigh, "Come on in!".

I step into Cornell's office, it's warm and smells ... of flowers. I feel like giggling but that would be weird. _No ... I have to try and be serious for once. Just hand him the box and say I like him ... easy!_ Cornell grabs a canteen off of his desk and beckons me over. As I walk over he opens the canteen and holds it out to me. I take it ... _it's warm_ , I sniff the contents, it's strong smell makes me feel energised. "What is it?", I ask bringing the canteen to my lips. "I made it using hot water and stimberries!", Cornell says as he watches me carefully. I take a sip then hand the canteen back to Cornell ... _that's stronger than alcohol!_ "How is it?", Cornell asks, "Great!", I say smiling up at him. "Well we have a big day tomorrow", Cornell ruffles my hair, "So you'd best go get some rest!", _he's treating me like a little kid again!_ I sigh and begin to walk off but stop myself just in time. "There is one more thing I need to talk to you about ...", Cornell raises his left eyebrow, "... you see ... I sort of ... made this ...", I hand the box over to Cornell, "It's not anything special ... I j-just thought you might like it!". Cornell opens the box his eyes light up when he pulls the little hand carved dire wolf. "I sort of have a confession to make!", _here we go_ , "I l-lo ...", _I'm doing it again!_ I hear laughter and look up to find Cornell nearly in tears. _Great, now I'm a laughing stock!_

"I'm sorry!", I turn to leave, _this is just too embarrassing._ But before I can reach the door I feel a hand reach out to stop me. Cornell pulls me back to him and cups my chin in his strong hand. "Now I know what makes The Ballistic Stephanie flustered!", Cornell's grin is one that makes my heart skip a beat, it's cheeky but innocent at the same time, _like he's trying to tease me but get away with it._ His deep blue eyes make me melt, _I feel as if I am being cleansed._ My mouth opens but I find no words come out. Cornell gives a little laugh under his breath, he brings his face close to mine and I feel his thumb caress my cheek. Just as our lips are about to touch, "See you tomorrow, Steph!". He lets go of my cheek and straightens up. Outside of Cornell's office I feel like screaming, _WHY DID HE TEASE ME LIKE THAT?!_


	9. Chapter 9

Connie

Phil and I walk together. Phil has a smile on his face and is humming along to a happy tune I do not know of. Cornell leads the group with Stephanie trailing along behind him. Stephanie looks distant and is blushing ever so slightly. Did something happen to her? Kay is just in front of me, she seems to be quite happy, Theasus struggles to keep up with Kay and her happy, bouncy walk. Lightning is flying somewhere above us. Will and Fred are at the back of the group. Fred seems to be sulking whilst Will looks rather embarrassed. What is going on with this tribe?

Cornell told us all early this morning that we were going to visit our new allies, the Raptor tribe. When I first heard this I was, and still am, a little nervous. But as we get closer and closer to the Raptors I realise that they can't possibly be any worse than the Black Skulls. What was once dread is now excitement, I wonder if there are any kids there that are my age?

"We're almost there!", Cornell shouts to us. I try to move to the right so that I can see past Theasus and see if I can catch a glimpse of the Raptor tribe. Phil suddenly grabs my hand and pulls me towards him so that we are walking side by side. "Phil?", I look up at him as he begins to sing.

"Let us dance under the sunlight,

As we sing our words will take flight", the song is joyful and makes me want to dance.

"We'll pick the flowers,

As we run through the moors,

Oh, so let us dance,

As if we are in a trance-", the song is cut off as Fred shouts at Phil to shut up. "You're giving me a headache!", Fred complains. We all come to a stop and I look up to see a giant gate. Cornell knocks loudly on the gate and steps back. It opens to reveal Owen smiling at us, "Welcome to the Raptor tribe!".

As Owen greets us, three young women come and takes our has short auburn hair with redish-brown eyes while another has long, straight bleach blonde hair and apple green eyes. The last woman has frizzy brown hair and dull, greyish-brown eyes. All three are pretty and charming in their own way. Fred seems to be taken by all three of the women but is more interested in the blonde. Owen's eyes wander over to Kay who is hesitating to give over her bag to the auburn woman. "Christie, Sophie and Trixie will take your stuff straight to your rooms!", he explains. "Rooms?", Fred looks over at Kay with hopeful eyes. What is he thinking? Owen nods, "that is right, you all have your very own rooms, each built and furnished to each of your liking!". Owen looks over at Cornell and winks, Cornell replies with a nod of his head. What is going on?

I soon spot a small tuft of dark hair poking out from behind Owen's leg. Owen sees me looking and glances down behind him. "Are you going to say hello?", Owen asks some unknown person. The tuft of hair disappears and reappears seconds later with a face I remember. Jack! Jack frowns at me as he steps in front of his father, "hello", Jack says in a grumpy tone. Owen ruffles his son's hair, "is that it?", he laughs. Owen now looks up at me, "He was talking about you ever since he first saw you, ya know?". Jack looks horrified, "Dad-", he whines. "'am I going to see that pretty little girl again today dad?' is what he'd say to me!", Owen continues to tease his son. Cornell smiles but looks slightly annoyed, "you don't say?", Phil says as he rubs his chin whilst looking Jack up and down. Jack thinks I'm pretty? The women who walked off with our bags before, now come walking back. Owen stops messing with his son's hair and becomes serious once again, "Christie, take Will and Cornell to their rooms!", as Owen says this the brown haired woman steps forwards and walks off, Cornell and Will follow close behind. Owen then turns to the bleach blonde woman, "Sophie, can you take Stephanie and Fred to their rooms?", Sophie nods and beckons the two to follow. Fred looks overjoyed as he races after Sophie. After Stephanie has disappeared me and Kay look over at Owen. Trixie, the auburn woman, walks over to Kay and Phil, "I'll be taking you to your rooms". Kay and Phil both follow Trixie away from me, Owen and Jack. Owen steps over to me, "my son is going to show you some of his friends, he'll show you to your room later, okay?", he asks. I nod and walk over to Jack who seems to be embarrassed.

Fred

I walk right behind Sophie, Stephanie is trailing behind us. Don't know what's up with her! She seems drunk but yet sober at the same time. Why am I even thinking about her when there is a hottie right in front of me?! I'm not even really interested in Sophie … but it is a great way to make Kay jealous! This has to be my best idea yet.

I walk up to Sophie's side and begin to chat with her. My sweet talk wins her over almost instantly. I'm not surprised either! No one can resist my charm and good looks … except Kay that is! We stop walking as we reach Stephanie's room. "This is your room!", Sophie says as Stephanie smiles slightly and walks inside a small stone building. Before she can go anywhere I put my plan into action, "so are you dating anyone?", I ask Sophie. Sophie laughs, "there's not really many good looking guys around here so most of the boys are taken!". "Is that a 'no' then?", I ask as Sophie begins to walk off. Sophie refuses to answer any more of my questions as she reaches my room. My room is identical to Stephanie's. She opens the door and goes in. I follow her inside out curiosity.

Inside my room, all of the walls are painted a light orange. There is a kitchen, a small living area, a bathroom and a bedroom. Sophie seems to have gone into my bedroom. I walk in to see Sophie sat on my bed, wrapped in a blanket, a pile of cloth clothing at the end of the bed. I smirk to myself as I start to undo my belt and remove my shirt. Well that was quick!

Sophie is really good in bed! She giggles as I playfully pin her down and kiss her neck. We kiss bounce about under the blankets for a while before Sophie gets out of bed and changes into her clothes. I put my trousers on and fasten my belt. I then see Sophie out of the door, "thanks for showing me to my room!", I call to her as she walks off, her hair slightly messy. Just as I am about to close the door I hear voices, one of them is Kay's. "What's the matter kitty?", I hear someone say, "please just leave me alone, I'm trying to find someone!", Kay says in a fed up tone. Kay walks into sight, a man with reddish hair and brown eyes following close behind her. I open the door wide, cold air hitting my bare chest. I walk outside and up to Kay, "Hey there Kay, what's up?", I say, glaring at the man next to her. Kay looks slightly happy to see me, "Have you seen Will?". I point in the direction of Will's room, "he should be there". Kay nods and runs off to find Will. The man goes to follow but I stop him. "What's up man?", he asks as if we are buddies, "why are you flirting with my girl?", I demand. The man laughs in my face, "you're girl?", he frowns then. "She seems more interested in this Will fellow than you!", the man begins to walk away when I step in front of him. "Kay is mine, so just back off. Flirting with her is my job!", I practically growl at him. The man laughs, "I'll be doing a lot more than that tonight!". With that he runs off.

He doesn't mean rape does he?

Kay

I race to Will's room, hoping from the bottom of my heart that he is there, and that Lewis guy isn't still following me! I reach his door and knock loudly. The door opens moments later and Will looks out at me, "Kay?", he asks, "what are you doing here?". I shrug, "I was just wondering if you had anything to do tonight?". Will looks confused but steps outside and closes the door. Will grabs my hand and leads me away from his room. "Where are we going?", I ask, Will leads me to a bench near the middle if the Raptor tribe. I sit down and Will sits next to be. He and I talk and joke together until it gets dark at which point Will looks up at the sky. I also look up to find the sky littered with stars. I lean my head on Will's shoulder. Will looks down at me with a smile. "You're beautiful!", he whispers, "what?", I ask, looking up at him. "Nothing!", Will looks away quickly, his face red with embarrassment. He's so cute! I kiss his cheek and then look back at the stars. Will looks back at me in astonishment, "Kay?", he asks, "yes?", I say, my cheeks red as I look up at Will. Our lips suddenly meet as Will draws me into a long and romantics kiss.

"Love you!", Will says when our lips finally part, I can't help but stare at him as I voice my feelings to him, "love you too!". We sit there cuddling each other for a while. I feel safe in Will's arms as he hugs me in his gentle arms. It eventually gets too cold and I become sleepy. Will walks me to my room and I kiss him good night. "See you tomorrow?", Will asks with a glint in his eyes, "of course!", I smile at him as he blushes.

Cornell

I sit down at the table in the kitchen, a bottle of wine in hand. The whole reason I did this was so that I could get closer to Steph. But I don't know how to approach her. Connie seemed happy this morning. I caught her playing ball with some other kids. Though I don't like the way that Jack kid was staring at her. Kay and Will seems to be doing good, though when I saw Fred he seemed to be hitting it off with that bleach blonde from earlier. I haven't seen Phil lately though. Wonder if he's okay?

I get up and make my way to the door. I need to confront Steph somehow. On opening the door I am surprised to see Stephanie standing right in front of me. She looks up, her face as red as a cherry. "I'm sorry!", she quickly apologies before turning round and running off. "Wait, Stephanie!", I call after her. Stephanie stops and looks at me with panicked eyes. I hold up the bottle of wine she can see, "I got loads in here, wanna help me drink it all?". Stephanie nods and walks ever so slowly towards me. I step back to let her through and close the door behind her. Stephanie sits down at the table as I fetch the wine from a cupboard. Now that we are both equipped with bottles of wine I start gulping down mine at a fast pace. Stephanie watches but doesn't take a sip of hers. I put my bottle down on the table, "what's the matter?", I ask as Stephanie looks away quickly. "Nothing!", Stephanie's answer is way too quick, she takes a tiny little sip of her wine and then rests it back on the table. I smile, "if you're trying to wait until I'm drunk then you've got another thing coming!", Stephanie looks up at me with side eyes, "cause I ain't ever gotten drunk in my entire life!". Stephanie looks disappointed, "let's have a little contest!", I propose, "who ever gets drunk first loses!". Stephanie looks up at me with excitement in her eyes, "the loser has to do anything the winner tells them to!". Stephanie nods and we both begin drinking. I already know that Stephanie will lose, she gets drunk so easily.

After a few hours I win, I'm a little bit tipsy but not as tipsy Stephanie is. She tries to get up but wobbles and nearly collapses to the floor. I get up and catch her, sitting her down on the table where empty glass bottle now lie. She looks up at me with a grumpy face, "that wasn't fair!", she moans, her hands resting on my biceps. I smile at her, she doesn't have a clue how she makes me feel! "Sorry, Steph!", I say, "you lost". Stephanie pouts and pretends to sulk, unaware of my intentions. "What do you want?", Stephanie asks. I take a deep breath before bring my face close to hers. Stephanie does not struggle but instead brings her face closer, allowing our lips to meet. Our lips part and we just stand there, staring into each other's eyes. Stephanie wraps her arms around my neck and I wrap mine around her waist. We kiss, this time for longer, when our lips part again they are quickly rejoined as I lift Stephanie off the table and into my arms. Stephanie giggles as I go into my bedroom and drop her on the bed. I lie on top of her and kiss her, on her neck, her cheek and quite a few times on her lips. The night ends when Stephanie falls asleep. I let out a sigh and lie next to her. She's really cute when she's asleep!

Phil

My room is right next to Kay's, I know she'll be mad if I wake her up in the middle of the night but I think she'd want to hear it. I told a small lie back when she had asked me who killed her family. But if I'm going to stay here for Connie's sake, then I'll have to come out with the truth. Walk up to Kay's room and am surprised to see Fred trying to pick the lock on Kay's door. I creep up behind him and lift him up by the collar of his shirt. Fred let's out a shriek, "what are you doing?", I demand. Fred flails about, "please don't hurt me!", he begs. The commotion alerts Cornell and Will who both come running towards Kay's room. I drop Fred to the ground and turn to Cornell, "he was trying to sneak into Kay's room!", I tell him. Cornell turns to Fred with an angry expression. Even Will looks outraged. Fred holds his hands out in self defence, "please just hear me out!", Cornell looks tired, "hurry up and explain yourself!". Fred begins to tell us what had happened to him earlier and how he thought that a man was going to try and rape Kay.

"This is nonsense!", Will says as he walks up to the door, "I was with Kay not too long ago!". He knocks on the door and waits for an answer. There is no sound to be heard, "she's probably asleep!", Will says as he begins to walk off. "HELP!", a cry arises from the room. Cornell is straight at the door, pushing himself against it. Fred also pushes himself to the door but is pushed out of the way as Will takes his place. I spot the window as am filled with dread as I see a man with reddish hair sat on top of Kay, his hand covering her mouth as he fiddles with his belt. The door is going open and Will races in, we all follow him through the blue kitchen and into Kay's room. The man has her on her bed with her pyjama bottoms pulled down to reveal her underwear. Will races over to the bed and punches the man hard on the nose. I quickly grab the man and pin him to the ground as Cornell and Fred come to put in a few hits.

Will

I quickly lift Kay into my arms as she cries softly into my shirt. I gently pull up her bottoms and hug her deeply. As I hold her I kiss her head showing her that I was still there and not about to let her go. "I was so scared!", Kay sobs, I rub her back, "I know", I whisper, "he said that he'd-", Kay's voice breaks off and look down at her to find her trembling in my arms. "It's okay now", I assure her, "cause from now on I won't leave your side!". Kay and I lie down, Kay in my arms, I will never let her go!


	10. Chapter 10

**Cornell**

I sit in Owen's office. I have told him about what happened last night and he has told me to meet him here to discuss Lewis's punishment. His office is small and made off stone like the many buildings here. His wooden desk has been polished so that it's so shiny I can see my reflection. Behind the desk is a large bookshelf. It's full of old maps and diary logs. Owen's desk is quite neat. A single piece of paper lies in front of him with a small pot of ink and a quill stood up in it on Owen right. I can quickly gather that Owen is right handed. Owen clears his throat, "I am deeply sorry about what happened to Kay last night and I promise that it will not happen again", Owen takes up his quill and brings it to his paper. "Lewis Malus. Offence : attempted rape. Punishment : 3 years in jail", Owen says aloud. The doors fly open and Lewis walks in, his face red with anger, "Uncle Owen?!", he walks up to Owen and slams his fist down on the desk. _Uncle?_ "What is this all about?!Three whole years in prison?!". Owen gets up out of his seat, "You broke one of our rules and offended our allied tribe!". Lewis slams his other hand down on the table, "I AM YOUR NEPHEW!", he yells. Owen backhands Lewis, catching him round his cheek and leaving a scar from his ring. "This tribe will be kept in order, you are not above everyone else!", Owen, now regaining his calm, sits back down, leaving Lewis in a state of shock."You will be taken to jail shortly, just sit down and wait for now", Owen points to the seat next to me. Lewis obeys and sits down.

Owen turns to face me, "I am terribly sorry, I hope we can put this whole thing behind us and remain allies". I nod my head, _despite this whole assault on Kay, Owen has helped me to get closer to Steph and is even going as far as punishing his own nephew._ Owen smiles and let's out a sigh. I stand up from my seat, "My tribe will want to be packing up to leave due to what happened last night, this will not affect the alliance between our tribes", I say. "If course", Owen nods his understanding. As I leave Owen's office a group men dressed fully in leather armour make their way to Owen's office, one is carrying handcuffs.

 **Kay**

I sit in my room, the dark blue walls around me doesn't seem as safe as they were when I first got here. I draw my legs up so that my chin is resting on my knees. Although Will, Cornell, Phil and Fred managed to get there just before Lewis could do any damage … _I feel unclean_. I was touched by a man … a man who wasn't Will, it makes me feel uneasy and somehow … unworthy. I feel myself tearing up. I hear the door open and I quickly wipe away my tears. I stand up off of my bed and walk out into the kitchen. Will is standing in the kitchen, his blue scarf hangs loosely around his neck. As soon as he spots me he is at my side, grabbing my chin and inspecting my face. _He looks angry …_ I start tearing up again and before I can stop myself I find myself crying uncontrollably. Will let's go of my chin and pulls me into a hug. His arms are warm and strong, I feel at ease as Will strokes my hair gently. "Shhhh", Will whispers softly, "it's okay now". I try to cease crying but I can't. "I won't let anyone hurt you, I promise!", Will's voice sounds hoarse, like he's too … _or trying his best not to._ "But aren't you angry?", I manage to say in between sobs. "Yes, I'm angry, but not at you", Will says firmly as my sobbing subdues, "I'm angry at that bastard for touching you … but I'm not angry at you". I feel relief sweep over me and look up at Will, "thank you!", I say as I kiss his lips gently. Will's face is tear streaked as he smiles down at me and kisses me back with an equal amount of care.

Outside everyone is waiting, Stephanie who is death staring anyone from the Raptor tribe as they walk past, Phil who looks really tired, almost as if he had been chasing around a galliminus. I can't help but smirk at the idea. Fred is stood next to Cornell looking very disappointed for some reason whilst Cornell looks … like Cornell, calm and collected. But as I look around … there is someone missing, _where's Connie?_

 **Connie**

I kick the ball hard as Rose comes running towards me. Danielle receives the ball and passes it to Hannah who goes for the goal. But the ball is blocked by Frank who kicks it to Greg. Me and Hannah race to protect Irene, our goalie. Danielle rushes to tackle Greg but he passes the ball to Paul who makes his way towards us. Rose tries to block his way but Paul kicks the ball between Rose's legs and Shaun begins to kick the ball towards the goal. I can see Jack on his way, a smile in his face. I turn to Hannah, a nine year old girl with mousy blonde hair and bluey-green eyes, she nods and goes to tackle Shaun. Danielle, a eleven year old with short black hair and blue eyes, instantly knows what is happening and blocks any kind of pass to Greg. Rose, a girl with ginger hair and reddish brown eyes does the same to Paul. As we planned, Shaun passes the ball to Jack. Hannah blocks any return pass to Shaun as I advance on Jack who's smile still remains on his face. I tackle him for the ball. Jack passes the ball through my legs and races around me to meet the ball again. I back track and block him from getting the ball. I give it a good kick which sends it flying down towards the goal. "GO CONNIE!", I hear Irene shout, a girl if nine with long bleach blonde hair and grey eyes. "SHOW THE BOYS WHO'S BOSS!", some other girls shout. I near the goal and kick with all my might. The ball is sent hurtling towards the goal. Frank tries to catch the ball but is too slow as the ball slips past his fingers and goes into the goal. "WE WIN!", Rose yells, "GIRLS RULE!", Danielle cheers. Hannah holds up a hand for silence, "No my friends", she shakes her head as she looks over at me with a smile, "Connie rules!". I smile at my new friends with pure joy.

Jack had challenged me to a match if football, girls versus boys. It was a long game but we girls finally won 1-0. I giggle to myself as the boys all groan in their defeat. The girls surround me as we taunt the boys and boast about our victory. Jack is looking at me with an awe-stricken face. _Is he impressed?_ I have no time to find out since in the next moment I am scooped up off of my feet and flung over someone's shoulder … "Cornell?!". Cornell begins to carry me away from my friends as they watch with confused faces. "We're leaving", he explains as I flail about for freedom. _Leaving, this soon?_ "But why?", I ask as I try to wiggle my way off his shoulder, "You wouldn't understand!", Cornell says quickly. I let out a grumpy mumble as Cornell carries me away. Phil had already tried to make me stay in my room this morning, luckily I managed to escape and gave him the old run around. "WAIT!", I see Rose, Danielle, Irene, Hannah and the boys, _including Jack,_ race towards me and Cornell. Cornell spins around to face them so I can't see what's happening. "Please, if Connie has to go, let us say good bye", I hear Irene beg. Even some of the boys begin pleading Cornell to put me down. I am put back down on my feet and Rise gives me a big hug. "We'll see you again right?", Danielle asks, tears in her eyes. "Yeah", I say, only to find myself being hugged by Hannah, "You have to promise!". I smile at my new friends, "I promise". Irene, who had been silent, walks up to me. She takes her necklace off and gives it to me. I take it in my hands and inspect it closely, it's an overall shaped locket. "I can't take this!", I tell Irene as I try to give the locket back. Irene shakes her head, "my dad makes pots of these everyday, and it's a gift, to remember us girls by!". I smile at my new friends and put the locket around my neck, "thank you".

 **Stephanie**

As we walk away from the Raptor tribe I feel anxious. Last night I kissed Cornell, _I mean yeah I was drunk but it was still a kiss!_ Cornell walks in front of me, acting all cool as usual. Kay and Will are behind me, walking together with Theasus trotting along next to them. Although what happened was a dreadful experience … _it seems to have brought them closer together._ Lightning is flying above us. Connie is sulking as she walks besides Phil, toying with some kind of necklace her friends gave her. Fred is at the back of the group looking miserable just like he did on our way up here. I look back towards Cornell to find him looking straight at me with a knowing smile on his face. I feel myself go red in the face as I look away. _How does he do that?!_

 **Will**

Walking with Kay's hand in mine feels natural somehow, I feel as if I'm holding something dear to me, protecting it from harm. As we get closer to the house I feel disappointment, _does it have to end?_ I mean I know after what happened the best thing is for Kay to get home where she might feel a little more secure. But I sort of don't want to go home, I just want to carry on walking with her, holding her hand like this forever. _Is that selfish of me?_

"We're back home!", Cornell shouts to us. Connie races from behind me and into the house, she seems quite upset. She had only just made some friends when we had left. I wish I could just tell her what happened to Kay, _shed understand then right?_ Me and Kay go inside the house, she looks tired so I lead her to her room. She opens the door and goes inside. I follow and close the door behind me. Kay sits down on her bed and indicates for me to sit beside her. As I sit down I notice her puffy red eyes and can't help but force back tears. _I'm sorry I wasn't there sooner Kay!_

 **Phil**

I walk Theasus and Lighting to the barn, Stephanie had said she'd take my bag to my room for me. Connie ran straight to her room, _she always was good at sulking!_ I laugh to myself as I put Theasus in his pen and lock the hatch on the gate. I lead Lighting to his pen and do the same as I did for Theasus. They both seem sad to be back home, they probably enjoyed their time to stretch their legs and go somewhere new. _Maybe I can convince Connie to walk them with me?_ As I leave the barn I notice Cornell walking towards me. "What's up?", I ask as I walk up to meet him, Cornell looks unsure, "After what's happened I need to be sure that this tribe is safe". Cornell looks past me and into the barn, I follow his gaze to Theasus's pen. "Even if it is just a raptor, it would offer a little more protection until we return to my father's base!", Cornell looks at me with eyes that tell me there is no other answer other than 'yes'. I nod and return to Theasus's pen, undo the lock and open the gate. Theasus hesitates before slowly leaving his pen. Cornell leaves for the house as I lead Theasus outside. In the doorway of the barn I turn to face the raptor, "Listen up boy", I say, placing a hand on his jaw. My and Theasus's eyes meet, we stare at each other as if we are in a staring contest. "You protect Connie and Kay, got it?", I say in a low voice, as if in response Theasus makes a purring sound that reminds me of a cat.

I let Theasus go and watch him as he begins to circle the house. _Hopefully there won't be anymore drama for a while!_

 **Later that day in Kay's room**

 _It's getting late_ , I look out of the window to see the the moon hanging in the night sky, _it looks so big!_ I take in the beauty of the night sky as I lie in bed, I can't sleep, I'm scared that if I do I might have a nightmare and Will us worried about me enough as it is. Earlier before Will left to go to bed he and I was talking, though it was mostly awkward silence. "I'm sorry", Will said, I could barely hear his voice, "Why are you apologising?", I had asked him in utter confusion. Will shook his head and I noticed tears running down his face, "I should have been there sooner!", Will burst out, "Lewis should have never have got near you!". Will sat there sobbing as I watched him, it hurts my heart to see Will cry … I leant in and wrapped my arms around his neck. I felt gentle arms wrap themselves around my waist as Will stuffed his head into my shoulder. I removed one arm and run my fingers through his hair, it seemed to calm him down slightly. "It's not your fault", I consoled Will, my voice sounding a little hoarse, "I should have been strong enough to stop him-", Will squeezed me tightly bringing me in closer. "But your a girl", he said, his voice muffled as he sobbed harder into my leather jacket, "And it's my job to protect you!". His words caught me off guard, "y-your job?", I looked at him, dumbstruck. Will looked up at me, his eyes full of innocence, "as your boyfriend!". I couldn't believe what I was hearing, I just sat there in silence as Will reburied his head in my shoulder.

I now lie in bed wearing my pyjama bottoms, _but not the same ones as yesterday_ , those were black with blue threading. These are a dark blue with black threading. I am also wearing a black vest top too. My hair is slightly damp from the shower I took just after Will left. _I can't believe I have a boyfriend …_ I let out a sigh as I remember how hard my heart was beating when I looked into Will's eyes. I suddenly hear a knocking on my window. I get out of bed and wrap my blankets around me for warmth I walk over to the window and open it wide to peer out. I look down to see Will holding onto the windowsill with terror written all over his face.

"Will?", I ask, _what is he doing?_ "Hey Kay. Can I come in please?", Will looks up at me with terror struck eyes. "What are you doing there?", I inquire in utter confusion, "Theasus got out", Will explains. I let go of the blanket and look out of the window "Hey Theasus. Be a good boy for me and go to bed", I shout down at the excited Raptor who is circling Will from below. "Kay!", Will says in a scared voice. "Bed Theasus",I say and the Raptor trots off. I open the window a little more and step back as Will climbs in "Thanks Kay. Why does that Raptor hate me so much?" He asks as he collapses onto the bed. I smile and lie down next to Will, "He doesn't hate you Will". "Then why does he snarl at me whenever I touch you?", he asks, _so he did notice?!_ "He's only protecting me", I answer, trying to hold back my giggles. Will seems to notice that I find the situation funny since the very next moment he wraps his arms around me and draws me close.

 **Will**

With Kay in my arms, I feel my heart beat faster as she looks up at me with those grey flecked, angel like, blue eyes. _She's so beautiful …_ Kay smiles and kisses my lips gently. My heart feels like it's about to jump out of my chest. "Kay?", I ask, "Yeah?", she replies, "Will you marry me?". She stares at me for a while before she bursts out laughing. I feel myself go red in the face, "Why are you laughing?". "Because I'm too young to get married and we've not long been dating!", Kay explains. _Oh …_ "but", I look up to find Kay smiling at me in a gentle manner, "Maybe a couple years down the line I might just say yes". A smile breaks through on my face … _I'll look forward to that day!_

 **Steph**

I walk through the hallway making my way to my room, a lot has happened lately. Kay getting attacked, the Black Skulls trying to take away Connie … _and Cornell kissing me._ I don't know why I'm so flustered by it but taking everyone bags to their rooms for them hasn't helped to take my mind off of it. I know that everyone has worse problems than mine, I mean … it was just a kiss, so why am I making such a big deal out of it? Cornell probably didn't mean anything by it either. _He was probably as drunk as I was!_ I reach my room and open the door. Inside the walls are a light brown, I chose this colour since when morning comes, it gives the room a golden glow. I walk in and close the door behind me, the room is dark and I can't see much so I reach out and fumble for the light. On finding it I turn it on and look round … "aaaah".

I find myself pressed against the wall with Cornell right in front of me. Cornell looks confused as he looks down at me. He's wearing nothing but his pyjama bottoms, which are pure black, revealing his tanned muscular chest. Cornell comes closer as worry sparks on his face, I try to move to the side but his arm quickly flies out, preventing escape. All I can do is stare at his bare chest as it comes closer. Cornell notices that I'm looking at his chest and the look of worry is replaced with a look of mischief. _What is he thinking?_ I find myself being drawn away from the wall and into Cornell's arms. One of Cornell's arms is wrapped around my waist whilst the other is holding my head to his chest. _He feels so warm …_ I snap myself back to reality and try to push Cornell away. But he's too strong and his grip on me is too firm. Cornell laughs as my efforts at getting free ends up in vain.

Cornell lifts me up off of my feet and into his arms and carries me over to my bed. He sits me down on the edge of my bed and leans in so are faces are almost touching. I freeze as my face goes bright red and my heart begins to race. "Come on now, Steph", Cornell says as our lips almost touching, "I only wanted a good night kiss!". _Wait, what?!_ Cornell's grin is cheeky but his eyes hold the look of pure innocence as I continue to stare into them. I don't know whether to compare him to a child or a puppy. "C-Cornell?", I barely manage to say his name, "Yeah?", Cornell's voice is full of self confidence and cool, "What is our relationship?". Cornell's face turns to shock, a look I have never seen on his face. But after a few seconds he has it back under control and is grinding again, "I thought it was obvious", he says. Cornell pushes me down so that I am lying on my back and then leans over me. _There's no escape!_ I look about frantically for a way out but find nothing. Cornell's face is right in front of mine now. Our lips touch and I can't help but kiss him back. The kiss deepens and Cornell slips his arms under and around my back, lifting me up and pressing me against him. This time I don't fight it. I wrap my arms around his neck and just let it happen. This time I am perfectly sober, I know what I am doing and I don't care.

Cornell pulls back and smiles down at me, "good night", he says before letting me go and walking towards the door. "Good night", I call after him as he disappears out into the hallway.

 **Cornell**

I stand right outside Steph's bedroom door, _I almost lost control in there!_ I don't know why but everytime I kiss her I feel like it just isn't enough. I start to walk towards my room, on my way there I pass Connie's room. I feel bad about taking her away from her friends, _I wonder if I should tell her? No!_ If I tell her she'll be devastated. I should apologise instead. I knock on her door and wait for a few moments. No reply. I open the door ever so slightly to find the light off and Connie lay on her bed with paper littered all over it, a pencil in hand. I walk over and look through the mess … _their all drawings._ I pick a few up and look through them. One is of a woman with long hair and kind eyes, she is looking straight at me with a happy smile. She looks young and quite beautiful. Another is if a man with an axe, chopping down a tree. He's in a forest, wearing a leather armour and boots. He has short hair trimmed so it hung limply at chin length. He has a bit of stubble on his chin but not enough for a beard. I look at another drawing to find a younger looking Phil looking straight back at me, he has his head lay on a table with tears in his eyes. _He must have been at least nineteen!_ I quickly look through the others; pictures of people wearing skull masks whilst pulling on a rope, of a woman lying face down on the ground with an arrow sticking out her back and some sort of great sword. I look at the ones near Connie, these are of kids, and not just any kids, the kids she had just met. _These are her memories!_

I quickly gather them up and put them away in her box beside her bed. I pray the pencil out of Connie's fingers and slip it into the box. I keep the two pictures of the man and woman. _I have to talk to Phil about this!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Cornell**

I walk down the cold hallway, it's early in the morning and the air conditioning still haven't been turned on yet. A week has passed and me and Stephanie are deep in a relationship. Connie has been going back and forth from here and the Raptor tribe, Will and Kay seem to be getting along well and Fred is hardly ever seen these days, he mostly hangs about in the forest. Walking past Connie's room I remember mine and Stephanie's conversation a few days ago.

Stephanie sat on my bed a smile on her face, "Connie and Kay seem to get along nicely these days right?", she asked. I nodded as I walked over to my bed. "They're kinda like sisters, don't cha think?", Stephanie asked as she slips off her jacket, revealing her black cloth vest top. "Yeah, kinda", I agreed as I pull Stephanie's vest up and over her head. Stephanie wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled herself up so that she could whisper in my ear. "I love you, ya know?", I began to undo her trousers, pulling them down to reveal her underwear, "What are you after?", I asked in suspicion. Stephanie kissed my neck, her warm lips on my neck felt so good. "Okay", I said in defeat as I pulled back and pulled off my clothes, "I'll do whatever you want!". Stephanie walks up to me and kisses my chest, wrapping her arms around me. "Please can I adopt them?".

 _Should I ask Connie for her approval?_ No, best to leave it as a surprise. I instead walk up to Kay's room, knocking loudly and waiting for an answer. The door opens and Kay peers out, "Cornell?", she asks when she sees me, "What are you doing this early in the morning?". I hesitate before asking, "Would you mind if I adopted you and Connie?". The question throws Kay off guard as she opens the door wider. She is wearing her pyjamas and her hair is tied back in a low pony tail. "Are you serious?", Kay asks, I nod. Kay ponders for a few seconds before smiling up at me, "I'd like that!".

 _Well now I have Kay's permission, all I need is Connie's._

 **Phil**

I'm sat in my room, the early morning light shining through the window and onto the paper in my hands. The drawings that Cornell showed me of Connie's parents, he had let me keep them. He also managed to sneak the one of me in my younger days. She had drew it all down to the last detail. _Damn it!_ Why did I think for a moment that Connie would let go of what happened so easily? I gaze into the woman's eyes, though they are colourless, they are deep and kind. The man chopping down the tree, though motionless, is built sturdy with a lot of muscle. I sigh deeply and stuff the papers in my pocket and stand up. Walking to the door I realise just how lucky I am, if it wasn't for the fact that Connie forgave me, I probably wouldn't be alive right now. I still haven't told Kay the truth about who killed her tribe either. _I need to tell her._

 **Stephanie**

Walking through the hallways I spot Cornell. He has a smile on his face as he walks towards me, "Hey Steph", he greets as he reaches me. "Hey", I say as I hug him, his warmth spreading through. "Got some good news", I look up at Cornell, offering my attention, "Kay just said yes to us adopting her!". I beam up at him, "And you're not joking?", I ask in disbelief, Cornell shakes his head with a smile on his face. I reach up and kiss Cornell on the cheek to thank him. _Now we just got to ask Connie._

 **Kay**

It's early in the morning, Cornell's just left, _lucky he didn't come in here!_ Will is lay on my bed in deep sleep. We didn't do anything, I just had a nightmare and Will promised he wouldn't leave my side. He kept that promise. But Cornell probably would have given Will a beating if he saw him in my bed. _He's so adorable when he's asleep!_ I walk over to my bed and stroke Will's messy light brown hair. It's soft and reminds me of Theasus's feathers, I still remember back when my tribe was destroyed, all I had left was Theasus. I would sit and cry and Theasus would lie in front of me allowing me to stroke his head, it would always comfort me. This feels just like it did back then. Will eyes fly open and his hand grips mine. He smiled up at me, "Hey babe", he pulls me close to him, "Morning sweetheart", I lean in and kiss him. He wraps his one arm around my waist while he uses his free hand to caress my cheek. Our kiss lasts for what seems to be a lifetime. But I like it and feel sad when Will pulls away, from the expression on his face, he seems to feel the same as I do. "We have to be careful now", say as I lie down next to Will, "Why's that babe?", Will asks as he pulls the blankets over us, "Cause Cornell just adopted me as his daughter!", "What?!".

 **Connie**

I creep out of my room, _everyone seems to be in their own rooms._ I walk down the hallway, my bare feet stinging against the cold floors. Carefully, to make sure I don't alert anyone, I tread down stairs and outside. The sun is still coming up so it's really cold. I head to the forest, my bag full of berries attached to my belt. I still remember back when I first came to this tribe, the monkey that scared Will, _I know it's still in the forest!_ Quietly, so as not to alert the wildlife to my position, I walk through the forest, my eyes sharp as I watch out for the monkey.

It's just coming to sunrise when I hear a rustling from some bushes. A ball of fire coloured fur races at me, knocking me to the ground. I look down at my bag to see the little monkey sticking it's head into my bag and eating the berries. "Oi!", I cry out as I try to pry the monkey out of my bag, "Come on now, Jeffrey, you'll make yourself sick!". I have been sneaking out early in the mornings to feed Jeffrey. He seems to have come to like me. I stand up and Jeffrey climbs up onto my shoulder, hands full of berries. I smile as he munches away, "Just don't make a mess on my shoulder, okay?". I don't know why but I get along better with animals than other people. It might be because of how the Black Skulls treated me … or it could be that animals are just super adorable, especially the babies.

I walk back to the house, usually Jeffrey runs off as soon as we get to the edge of the forest. This time he stays glued to my shoulder, almost as if he is willing to follow me anywhere. We reach the door and I open it slightly, peering in to see if anyone is around. When I am sure that there is no one around I step inside and close the door behind me. I silently creep out into the hall and past the kitchen. "Where do you think you were?", I spin round and find Fred right behind me. _So close!_ "Is that a monkey?", Fred asks as his eyes fall on Jeffrey. _Well duh!_ I nod as Jeffrey nibbles on his berries. Fred let's out a groan, "One little monkey is enough as it is! And where do you find all these animals?". I feel angry at Fred but bite down on my tongue, I could hit him and it would put him in his place. _But remember what Dennis does to naughty little girls?_ I look away from Fred as the memory is brought back. Jeffrey seems to have picked up on my feelings since he has begun to throw berries into Fred's face. "Argh!", Fred covers his face as he stumbles back and out of the house. I can't help but laugh as Jeffrey slides down and clings to my waist so that he can get more berries out of my bag.

 **Will**

 _Cornell's daughter eh?_ I sigh to myself as I walk down the hallway, I better not get caught or Cornell will probably get Theasus to chase me. I reach the kitchen and see Connie stood there, her back turned to me with something fire coloured around her waist. "Hey, Connie", I say, taking a step towards her, "What you got there?". Connie turns round to face me. I become gripped with panic as I remember my old nemesis … _the monkey!_

Connie smiles at me, clearly happy, "Hi, Will, this is Jeffrey, my new friend!". The monkey let's go of Connie and sits on the floor, it's big black eyes staring straight into mine. _Show no fear! Show no fear! Show no fear!_ The monkey, Jeffrey, stands up on it's legs and begins to walk towards me. I spin round and run as fast as I can. The monkey is close behind me. _Why me?!_

 **Kay**

 _I feel lonely when Will isn't here. I wonder where he is?_ Just as I am thinking this a loud knocking comes from the door of my room. I get up off of my bed and open it. Will is stood there looking out of breath and panicked. "Will? What's the matter?", I ask as Will races inside and closes the door behind him. "What's going on?", I grab Will's hand and lead him to the bed, making him sit down so that he can calm down. Will shakes his head, "It's stupid". I grab his hand and squeeze it tightly, "It can't be that stupid if it is making you scared", I give Will a gentle smile. _It's probably Theasus …_ Will opens his mouth to speak when a knocking comes from the door. I get up and Will wraps his arms around my waist, "Please don't open the door!", he begs. "I have to, what if it's Connie or Cornell?", I say as I pry Will's arms off of me, _he's surprisingly strong!_ I race to the door and open it. A small blur of fire coloured fur races in. "What in the-", I have no time to react as the small monkey chases Will around my room and out into the hallway. _It seems that Will has a new friend!_

 **Stephanie**

I and Phil am alerted to the girlish screams of Will as we both stand up from the kitchen table and run up the stairs. Will is running like there is no tomorrow, a fire coloured monkey is chasing after him. Phil bursts out laughing as the monkey closes in on Will. _That monkey seems oddly familiar_ … "Jeffrey, no!", Connie races up beside me. _Jeffrey?_ "You know this monkey, Connie?", I ask as Connie continues to shout at the monkey. Connie looks up at me and nods, "His name is Jeffrey and he's my friend!", Connie turns back to the monkey and carries on trying to call him to her. _Friend, eh? Wait if the monkey is Connie's friend then that must mean that he is tame._ I look up at Will, "Hey, Will, the monkey won't hurt you, it's tame!". When Will hears this he stops and turns to face the monkey. The monkey, Jeffrey, also stops and stares up at Will, almost as if confused. The very next moment Jeffrey climbs up Will's leg and comes to sit on his shoulder. "GET IT OFF!", Will yelps as Jeffrey begins to hug Will's head, almost as if he is trying to tell him to calm down. "Will, calm down!", Connie says as she comes near with a handful of berries, "Jeffrey is just trying to say hello!", Connie reaches up, offering the berries to the fire coloured monkey. Jeffrey let's go of Will's head and jumps off onto Connie's shoulder. Connie giggles as Jeffrey's tail brushes against her cheek, he then sits quietly on her shoulder whilst munching on Connie's berries.

 **Cornell**

I have been trying to ignore the commotion outside of my office since I have been trying to design something very important. But due to all the laughing outside I can't think straight. I stand up and walk to the door, opening it I see Stephanie, Phil, Will and Connie. Will looks shaken up while Phil and Stephanie are laughing at a small monkey sat on Connie's shoulder. "Connie, where did you get that monkey?", I ask. Connie looks up at me in surprise which then turns to fear. I instantly know the answer which Connie seems reluctant to give me. Fred comes up from behind Stephanie, his arms crossed with a smug smile on his face, "I found her early this morning heading back from the forest!". Connie glares at him, "When I tried to ask her about it she got that monkey to throw berries at me!", Fred continues, smirking evilly at Connie. "That's not what happened!", Connie's outburst takes us all by surprise. Connie turns to face me, "Fred started saying some nasty things to me and Jeffrey", Connie points to Fred, Jeffrey's gaze follows Connie's finger and he looks straight at Fred. "Jeffrey got mad and threw berries at Fred to tell him off!", Connie's eyes are full of pure rage. Kay comes out of her room and looks about herself as everyone is silent and staring at Connie.

"You little liar!", Fred spits angrily at Connie. Connie suddenly looks down at the ground, as if remembering something important. She was full of hot fiery rage just a moment ago, now she's cowering back within herself, as if afraid of something. I'm about to say something to Fred when a berry flies through the air and lands on Fred's forehead. Jeffrey is chucking berries at Fred as if he has just hurt Connie. Fred takes off running with Jeffrey close behind him. Kay comes closer, a big smile on her face, "I take it as that was your monkey?", she asks as she comes to stand by Connie. Connie nods still looking slightly scared for some reason.

 **Connie**

Me and Kay walk down to the kitchen, Stephanie had told us to wait down there until she and Cornell came down to us. _Kay seems to know what's going on, but I can't bring myself to ask her._ Jeffrey has followed Will out to the barn and Phil went with Cornell to Cornell's office. Fred still hasn't come back after being chased by Jeffrey so it's just me and Kay. I sit down at the table, right by the emergency bat. I feel safer when I know that their is a weapon within reach. Kay walks over to the industrial grill, "You hungry?", she asks, grabbing the spatula that hung up on a hook on the wall. "Yeah", I say quietly, Kay begins to fry off some eggs, she then toasts and butters some bread and dishing the food onto two plates. Kay sets a plate down for me and begins to eat her own. I look down at the plate, everything is cooked to perfection. I begin to eat.

 **Phil**

Cornell hands me two pieces of paper, each with a drawing on. The first is of a flower with a single leaf, whereas the second is of a star. I can tell straight away that Cornell's drawing isn't as good as Connie's. "I want you to make two silver lockets, one with the engraving of a star and one with the engraving of a flower", Cornell says as he sits down at his desk. I nod and leave his office. _I wonder what their for._

 **Stephanie**

I and Cornell creep down the stairs and towards the kitchen. Connie and Kay are sat at the table playing rock, paper, scissors. Cornell holding the lockets he had Phil make and me holding the cake I had made this morning, I decorated it with white icing and chocolate and tintoberry flavoured pen icing on top. _I hope they like it!_ Cornell clears his throat as we walk in the kitchen. Kay and Connie look up, their eyes widen with surprise. I place the cake down on the table and Cornell hands me the locket with a flower on. I walk up to Connie and fasten the locket around her neck. "Please", I look into Connie's emerald eyes, "Can we adopt you?".

Connie smiles up at me, clearly happy, "Yes and thank you!". Connie hugs me tightly before racing over to Cornell and hugging him.

 **Kay**

I smile as Connie hugs Cornell, Cornell is so tall that Connie is actually hugging his legs. The cake Stephanie made is laid down next to me. It is covered with a white icing and some writing on top. "Welcome to the family girls!". I smile as I admire Stephanie's handwriting. I hold my locket in my hand, it's silver and has a star engraved in it. I open it to find two small pictures inside, one of Stephanie and Cornell hugging and looking straight at me with smiles on their faces. I look at the other picture and find myself gasping in shock. Connie and Will are smiling back at me, Connie seems to be sat on a rock with Will stood in front of it. Connie looks very happy and Will is looking lovingly back at me. I look up at Cornell who is smiling knowingly at me, _how did he know?_


	12. Chapter 12

**Kay**

It's the second of October, me and Connie are excited for Halloween. Cornell had promised us a party, which the Raptor tribe and a few other tribes will be joining in with us. Stephanie is out growing some pumpkins and Will is out doing some scary decoration designs with Phil. Fred is out in the forest … _still._ Jeffrey is with me and Connie since we are in charge of making costume designs. I am sat on my bed and Connie is lay on her belly, on the floor, pencil in hand and paper in front of her. "I think it should be a bit tighter around the waist", I say as Connie sketches down the design, "And maybe black?", she suggests, I nod. "What about Cornell?", Connie asks, "ooo, what about Frankenstein's monster?", I say, Connie giggles and sketches down Cornell's costume. "Maybe Stephanie could be a mad scientist?", I ask, Connie sketches down something and holds it up so that I can see. Will and I have vampire costumes, Fred is a prisoner, Phil is a werewolf, Stephanie is a mad scientist and Cornell is Frankenstein's monster. Jeffrey jumps up and down on the bed next to me in excitement. His costume is a hotel worker. "Great, now we just have to do yours!", I say as I try to think of a good costume for Connie. "I want to be a witch but Stephanie says she has already made my costume", Connie says sadly. _I wonder what it is?_

I go to open the door after a series of knocks indicate that Stephanie is outside. I open the door and am immediately pulled into a hug. "How's my little star doing?", Stephanie asks as she hugs me to death, _Jeez, I can't even breathe!_ "I'm fine Stephanie, but I'm having a little trouble breathing at the moment", I manage to say. Stephanie let's go and smiles nervously at me, "Sorry, got a little carried away there", she looks past me and at Connie. A smile fills her face as she passes me and heads in Connie direction. "How's my little clover doing?", Stephanie chases after Connie who dives under my bed. Jeffrey also hides under the bed, afraid that Stephanie might come after him. "Come on now, I just want a hug!", Stephanie says as she reaches under my bed. "I'M TOO YOUNG TO DIE!", Connie yells as Stephanie grabs hold of her ankle and begins to pull. Connie is pulled from under my bed and into Stephanie's arms. Connie is then squeezed to the point of suffocation, Stephanie then spots the piece of paper with the costume designs on. "Wow, that was quick!", she says as she lets go of Connie and grabs the paper. Connie gasps for breath as she races behind me so that Stephanie couldn't get to her. "I love mine and Cornell's costumes, I'll get these to Phil right away!", Stephanie gets up and races out of the room. "I think you're safe now", I laugh as Connie continues to cower behind me. "She might come back!", Connie whispers as she refuses to move. I laugh, Connie has settled down nicely with the idea of Stephanie and Cornell as our new parents but neither of us are used to Stephanie's hugs just yet.

 **Connie**

"I need to go get washed", I tell Kay who nods and opens the door for me, "Meet you downstairs when you're done". I leave Kay's room and head for mine, keeping an eye out for Stephanie. I don't think I can handle another one of those hugs. I open the door to my room and walk in. Cornell had come and painted the walls an emerald green. I close the door behind me and walk over to my desk, Cornell had asked Will to make me it so that I had a proper area to do my drawings. I've noticed recently that a couple of my drawings had disappeared. The ones if my parents when they were still alive. Remembering them still upsets me but not as much as it did before, I guess it's because I know they'd want me to be happy and not hung over the past. I have made some new memories, more happy than sad. A piece of paper us lay on the desk, I still haven't finished the drawing I was doing last night. It's a picture of Kay, Will and me. I'm sat on a large rock in the woods, Kay is in Will's arms, her hands on his chest whilst looking up at him in a loving way. Will has his arms wrapped around Kay's waist his eyes meeting hers. I am just sat there watching the scene play out with a happy look in my eyes and a smile on my face. I still have to finish off the trees and maybe add in some leaves too. I walk towards the bathroom door and open it, walk in and close it. I turn on the shower and let the water run while I take off my clothes. I hesitate when it comes to my bandages since I don't want to look at the scars.

 **Fred**

I know that at this time in the day Connie likes to take a shower. I walk to her bedroom door and open it, just as I expected I can hear the shower running and Connie is nowhere to be seen. I came in here because I need to know what Kay thinks of me, if I can find Connie's diary then maybe there'll be something about Kay on it. The room has been painted the same shade as Connie's eyes, a bed is in the corner of the room right by the window. It's a wooden bed with black bedding. The floor has black carpet and a wooden desk is at the other side of the room next to a wardrobe and a large wooden box. I try my luck with the box, digging through Connie's things I find toy wooden dolls and little dolls clothes. There are stuffed animal toys too; a raptor, a argentavis and a dilophosaurus. I close the box and begin going through Connie's wardrobe instead. There are a lot of dresses and pelt coats hung up. At the bottom are some shoes, boots and slippers. _With this many shoes, I wonder why Connie always goes barefoot?_ I close the wardrobe and walk over to Connie's bed, checking under the pillows to make sure she didn't hide anything under them. The bed had been made neatly, jet black blankets pulled neatly over emerald green pillows. At the end of Connie's bed are some teddies; a terror bird, a white dire wolf and a fire like monkey. _Huh, Connie really likes animals …_ I walk over to the desk and begin looking through the draws, in one draw is pencils and coloured chalk sticks. In another is blank pieces of paper and pads. In another is paper that have drawings and sketches on. _Connie is really good at drawing!_

I stand up and notice something on top of the desk. A drawing that doesn't look finished, but it makes me angry all the same. It's a drawing of Connie Kay and Will, Kay with her hands on Will's chest and looking up lovingly at Will. Will with his arms around Kay's waist and returning Kay's gaze, Connie is smiling happily at the couple. Now I have my answer I leave Connie's room and slam the door shut behind me. I already knew that there was something going on between Kay and Will but I had that small ray of hope that Kay wasn't really into Will. But I guess I was wrong. _There is only one thing to get this out if my system … tintoberry wine!_

 **Connie**

I am just finished with my shower when I hear the door slam shut. I slip on my pants, then my trousers and my top. I wind the bandages around my arms again and open the door to peep into my room. I can't see anyone, "Hello?", I say as I grab my towel to dry my hair. I walk over to my bed and see that the blankets have been pulled back. I straighten them and then get onto my hands and knees, peering under my bed to make sure that there isn't anyone under it. I stand up and continue to dry my hair. _It was probably just Stephanie or Kay even._ I walk back to the bathroom and hang the towel back on it's the towel ring. I close the door and walk over to the door of my room. I open it and peer out, I can't see anyone. I walk out and close the door behind me.

I walk down the hallway and towards Kay's room, _maybe she's still there?_ I reach Kay's door and knock on it a few times. No answer, _she's probably downstairs._ I turn and begin to walk towards the stairs. But I find myself freezing at what I see. Fred is staring back at me, his expression blank. In his hand is a glass bottle of reddish liquid. "Fred?", I ask as I move a little closer to the wall. "Hey Connie", Fred raises the bottle to his lips and takes a big sip then wipes off any access with the back of his hand. "How's it going?", Fred asks, walking towards me, "I heard you and Kay are sisters now, that must be nice", I stumble backwards as Fred nears me, a manic looks growing in his eyes, _he's starting to look like Dennis!_ "Fred, are you okay?", I ask as I walk backwards. Fred laughs and smashes the bottle against the wall which sends shards of glass all over the place. I hold up my arms to protect my face. Fred begins to laugh loudly as he steps closer, "Please, Fred", I plead, "Your scaring me!". Fred simply smiles, "Why, it's not like I'm one of those Black Skulls is it?", Fred's words shock me, "I mean it's not like I'm gonna put a knife to your arm now is it?". I feel panicked as I take a step back and feel a sudden pain in my heel. The pain is so great that I collapse, holding my foot in my hand. On inspection I realise that a shard of glass is wedged in the heel of my right foot. I find myself starting to tear up.

 **Kay**

I'm down in the kitchen with Will. He's got Jeffrey on his shoulder. _They look so adorable together!_ Stephanie has made a blue scarf for Jeffrey so that he and Will could match. Will smiles up at me and I smile back. "Jeez, why do you have to be so darn adorable!", I say, sighing. Will looks shocked, "Wait, what?", his cheeks turn a bright red. I lean in and kiss him lightly on his cheek. Will looks like he's about to pass out. I giggle as Jeffrey slaps Will across the face … almost as if trying to tell him to pull himself together. A loud smashing sound from upstairs sounds out. _Connie's still upstairs!_ Me and Will race up the stairs to find Fred stood in front of Connie who is sat on the floor holding her foot. There is broken glass all over the floor. Fred turns round to face me, looking fairly startled. "What have you done?!", Will shouts at Fred as he storms over to him, pushing him away from Connie. I race past the two and to Connie. She has a large shard of glass stuck on her foot and is very near the brink of bursting into tears. "Will I need your help!", I call to Will who has Fred by the scruff of his collar. Will walks over and kneels beside me, "What do you need?", he asks, looking worriedly at Connie's foot. "I need you hug Connie whilst I take the glass out of her foot!", I say as I move behind Connie, Will does as he is told and Connie gets on her knees so that I can easily get to her foot. I yank on the glass and it slips out as blood wells up from the cut. Connie squeezes Will tightly and let's out a yell of pain. I quickly put my hand over Connie's heel. Will tears off the bottom of his shirt and hands the ripped material to me. I use it to bandage Connie's foot temporarily. Now standing up, Jeffrey jumps off of Will's shoulder and onto mine, I walk over Fred and slap him hard on the face. Jeffrey slides down my arm and also slaps Fred on the face leaving two red hand marks, one bigger than the other. Cornell comes racing up the stairs, he takes one look around and then his eyes harden on Fred. Fred yelps and runs off with Cornell hot on his tail.

Stephanie comes up stairs looking very confused, "What's going on up here?", she asks, "Why is there glass all over the place?", Stephanie's eye gall onto Connie who is still hugging Will, "Connie? What's the matter?". She walks over to Connie and pries her off of Will's, "Oh my, what happened to your foot?".

 **Stephanie**

After Kay explained everything to me I told her to get the emergency bat and to beat Fred to death if she saw him. I'm now carrying Connie to her room, _I need to bandage the cut up properly._ She is hugging me tightly, _she's so light for her age!_ Then again she always eats her food rather fast, almost as if she were starving. The Black Skulls probably didn't feed her as much or as often as they should have. We reach Connie's room and I open the door. We walk inside and I sit Connie on her bed before walking back and closing the door. I then go through my bag and find the bandages which I use on Connie's foot. "This wouldn't have happened if you had worn your shoes, ya know?", I say as I finish of bandaging Connie's foot. Connie doesn't say anything. I stand up and go to Connie's wardrobe. I had made quite a few outfits just for her, but she has never once tried a single one of them. I pick out my favourite; a sleeveless black cloth top, puffy brown shorts and black hide boots that end just below the knee. I bring it over to Connie who looks mortified. "Please?", I beg, "It'll make me really happy!".

 **Cornell**

 _Damn, where did that jerk go?!_ I have chased Fred out of the house but he disappeared into the forest and I can't find him. I walk back to the house and open the door. Will and Phil are standing in the kitchen and appear to be admiring something. "What are you two doing?", I ask as I near them. Will turns to face me, a big smile on his face, Jeffrey is sat on his shoulder with both hands over his mouth, almost as if he is shocked. I look past Phil to find Connie and Kay standing in front of the table, Stephanie off to the side admiring her handy work. Kay is wearing; a dark blue, off shoulder top revealing the strap of a black vest top, black cloth leggings and her usual black hide boots. She has her black jacket in her hand and is smiling at Will. _Though it is less skin being shown than her last outfit … I still don't it!_ Connie is looking fairly embarrassed, she is wearing; a sleeveless black cloth top, a pair of puffy brown shorts and black boots that end just below the knee. "Wow", I say, "Steph, you really did a good job on the girls!". Stephanie smiles at me and I hear Phil wolf whistle as Kay walks up to Will. Will is about to say something when Jeffrey slides down so that he is hanging by Will's waist, reaches out and grabs Kay's free hand. "Jeffrey?", Kay asks in confusion, _what is that monkey up to?!_ Jeffrey presses his lips against Kay's hand and shoots back up onto Will shoulder. Will death stares Jeffrey as Phil, Stephanie and Connie all bursts out laughing. "Looks like you've got some competition, Lover boy!", Phil laughs. I stay silent, still shocked about Jeffrey's behaviour. Kay is just outright shocked that a monkey kissed her hand. _Well this is going to be interesting!_


	13. Halloween Special

**Stephanie**

Me and Cornell stand in front of the house, waiting for our guests to arrive. It's Halloween and we've invited three tribes to come over to ours; the Raptor tribe, the Beelzebufo tribe and also the Lymantria tribe … _Cornell's home tribe._ We are all dressed up in the costumes that Connie and Kay designed. Connie is hiding inside since she doesn't want anyone to see her costume. Kay is curling her hair in her room and Will is refusing to look in a mirror, _thats Wimpy Will for ya!_

Fred is in the kitchen, sulking about his costume as well as the fact he is stuck on barn duty for the rest of his life. A howl arises from inside the house and I can't help but giggle to myself. Phil loves his costume, as soon as he put it on he has been rampaging around the house acting like a real werewolf. And Jeffrey is with Will, the last time I saw him he kept taking his hat off and bowing to me, Connie and Kay as we walked by. _He's turning into a real gentleman!_ Cornell is dressed as Frankenstein's monster … though I think he is a little offended by Connie's decision. Cornell makes a grumpy grunting noise and I look up to see three frog like creatures jumping towards us. One is a light green, one is a dirty blue and the other is a reddish colour. They stop just before me and Cornell as the riders dismount. A girl of about eighteen with long reddish hair and brown eyes, a boy with the exact same features and age as the girl, _but shorter hair._ And a young boy with blonde hair and green eyes. All of the riders wear the same clothes; black hide tops, bottoms and boots. "Hello", I say as I step forward to meet them, "Welcome to the Terror Birds, you must be the Beelzebufo tribe!".

The blonde boy was an eleven year old named John. The other two were twins called Chris and Chloe. Next were the Lymantria tribe, they flew in on giant moths from the deserts. They came wearing desert cloth clothes. The Raptor tribe came last. Owen leads them on his dark coloured raptor. Jack is right behind him with the others all in a line behind him. They reach the house and all dismount off of their raptors. Theasus comes flying out of the barn to meet his new friends. Owen, Jack and the rest of the children all walk into the house. The girls all circle me and Cornell, "where's Connie?", one of them asks, "she should be in her room, I'm sure Cornell could show you!". The girls all surround Cornell who looks panicked.

 **Cornell**

I walk up the stairs and down the hallways, passing Kay's room and stopping outside Connie's room. I knock on Connie's door and the girls all form a half circle around me. The door opens and Connie peeps round the door. _She doesn't look happy!_ Connie opens the door wider to reveal a puffy pink dress with puffy pink sleeves, ballet shoes and white wings. In her hair is a pink bow. "Wow!", pipes up one of the girls who is dressed as a witch, "you look so pretty!". Connie eyes the girl with an envious look, "I wish I was a witch like you!", she says in a sulk. Another shakes her head, this one is dressed as a pumpkin, her hair as orange as her costume, "Nonsense Connie, there are loads of witches, zombies and other scary costumes!". The other girls nod in agreement. A girl with bleach blonde hair steps in front of Connie and grabs her hands, "You'll be the only angel at the party!". Connie, smiling slightly, steps out of her room and closes the door behind her. She and her friends all walk downstairs to meet the other children.

 **Fred**

I am sat in the kitchen, my costume is black and white and makes me feel like a zebra. Connie and her friends walk past and giggles, _they all think the same!_ In the kitchen with me is a very fidgety Will, he is sat opposite to me at the table with his leg bouncing nervously under the table. "Yo, will you stop that? It's driving me crazy!", I say as Will looks up at me with an annoyed expression. Some of the Lymantria tribe members come into kitchen, they are all dressed as mummies and seem to crowd around the table, _sure are a lot of them!_ There are three kids a load of adults and a handful of teens. I look around but I can't find any girls my age. I decide to go find the other tribes in hope that there is a pretty girl some where. I walk out of the kitchen and out into the hallway. The party is downstairs in the basement but it is still too early to go down. I go outside and find the Raptor tribe boys playing football. Owen is watching them whilst chatting to Stephanie and two others. There is a girl of about eighteen and a boy around the same age. There facial features are identical, brown eyes and reddish hair. _The girl is quite pretty!_

I walk up to the group and say hello. Stephanie instantly cuts me eyes. I shrug her off and turn to the girl, "Hi there", I say, the girl nods at me, "What's your name?", I ask, "Lisa", she says before turning and whispering something into the boy's ear. Lisa then turns and walks into the house. _Well that sucks!_

 **Will**

I hate my costume, even though Stephanie said that I looked great … I don't like how Connie went into so much detail. And I still don't know where Kay is either. The party will start soon too. The people around me are all chatting away to each other and all the voices soon gives me a headache. I stand up and walk off to find Kay, Connie and some other girls are stood at the bottom of the stairs. "You waiting for Kay?", I ask as I draw near to them. Connie nods and holds her hand up to pet Jeffrey who is sat on my shoulder. I smile as Jeffrey takes his hat off and does a little bow before proceeding to kiss Connie's hand. The girls all giggle as the monkey climbs off my shoulder and onto Connie's. "You lot seem to be having fun", I look up to Kay descending the stairs. Her golden hair is curled and her lips are a blood red. I'm rendered speechless as she reaches the end of the stairs and comes to stand before me. Kay smiles teasingly at me as my jaw practically drops open. I find myself eyeing her up and then down; her dark, sleeveless dress showing off her figure. "What's the matter?", Kay asks as she flicks my nose playfully with the tip of my finger, "Cat got your tongue?". My head hurts slightly and I suddenly feel a lot more confident.

 **Kay**

Will suddenly takes my hand in his and raises it to his lips, the edge of one of his fake vampire teeth, poking out from between his lips. My heart begins to beat faster as his misty grey eyes look back into mine. Will grins up at me and plants a kiss on my hand, "On the contrary, m'lady, your beauty simply rendered me speechless is all". The girls all groan and make disgusted noises as they quickly race off downstairs. Connie waves as she races off with her friends, "See you at the party, Kay!", Jeffrey who is sat on Connie's shoulder also waves at me. Will straightens up and pulls on my arm so that I end up with my cheek against his chest and his arms around my waist. "Shall we go to the party, m'lady?", Will asks, I nod slowly, still shocked by Will's sudden change in behaviour. Will reaches back and grabs either side of his cape, wrapping it around me so that no one can see me. With Will's guidance, I carefully walk down the stairs and into the basement where the party is. The whole time I am wrapped on Will's cape, his warm chest against my back. We reach the bottom of the stairs and Will leads me further into the room. "Hey Will", I can hear Stephanie talking, "Why are you walking like that?". I start to understand what Will wants to do and smirk to myself as he pulls back his cape, revealing me to Stephanie. "RAWR!", I bare my teeth and shape my hands to look like claws. "Aaah!", Stephanie exclaims as she steps back in surprise, "Oh lord, so that's where you were!". Stephanie takes a deep breath and laughs, "Please have fun at the party Kay!", me and Will walk past a shaken up Stephanie and further into the room. A small ball of red and orange darts towards us and up Will's shoulder. I turn to find Jeffrey sat on Will's shoulder and hugging his face as if he had not seen his human in years.

The music booms through the basement, first playing salute by little mix then moving onto dance with me tonight by Olly Murs. Will and Connie are both dancing together, looking like they are having a really good time me. Stephanie and Cornell are both off drinking somewhere and I am just getting myself a drink. As I lean over to fill myself a cup of punch I feel as if I am being watched. I look up to see Fred staring right at me, more specifically … my butt. I stand up and quickly walk off with my drink to find Connie.

 **Will**

I walk up to Fred, who's eyes are still circling Kay's behind. I reach him and grab by the scruff of his his top. Fred's eyes meet mine with annoyance, "What's your problem, man?", he says as he grabs my fists and yanks me off me him. "Your my problem, keep your dirty eyeballs away from my Kay!", I say angrily, baring my teeth at Fred. Fred stares at me for a minute before laughing, "Oh my god Will! That is hilarious!", I ball my fists as Fred continues to laugh, "Just keep away from my Kay!". Fred's eyes focuses on mine, a smug grin on his face, "But is she really yours?", he asks whilst crossing his arms. "What do you mean?", I ask as Fred turns round to get himself a cup of punch. "Oh nothing much", Fred sneers as he turns back round to face me with a cup of punch in his hand, "Just that Kay is the brave one and your … well … you". I am filled with fresh rage as I pull back my arm ready to swing at Fred who snickers, "You ain't got the guts wimp!". I hesitate … Kay wouldn't want any more drama … but I need to teach Fred a lesson. An idea suddenly pops into my head as I smirk at Fred, dropping my hand back down to my side, "Wanna bet?!". I turn round leaving Fred looking very confused and race to Kay who is stood talking to Connie. Kay turns to face me with her bright blue eyes that gives the strength to along with my plan. "Hey Will?", she greets me with a kind smile, I gulp, already regretting what I am about to do. I place my hand on Kay's back and pull her closer, "Please don't beat me up!", I beg as I look down into Kay's surprised eyes. I lean in and press my lips against Kay's, closing my eyes tightly waiting for the pain to begin.

 **Connie**

I stand in shock as Will pulls Kay into a kiss. By the buffet table I can see Fred his face is dumbstruck and I can't help but giggle. But Fred's jaw practically falls to the floor when Kay reaches up and wraps her arms around Will's neck, returning Will's kiss. Everyone around all cheer and I can hear Phil howling, I look towards Stephanie and Cornell to find Stephanie joining in with the cheer and Cornell looking very angry at Will. The cheering dies down and slow dance music fills the room. I go to find my friends, but when I reach them some boys from the Raptor tribe come up to us. "Hi Connie", one of the three boys say, "Hi Shaun", I greet him, Shaun is dressed as a skeleton. There is also Frank who is dressed as a Zombie and Paul who is dressed up as a ghost. Shaun opens his mouth to say something when Frank interrupts him, "Do you want to dance with me, Connie?", Shaun spins round to glare at Frank. I can hear Danielle and Rose giggling behind me. "No fair, I was going to ask her!", Shaun protests, Frank holds his hand out in front of him to signal silence, "But I asked first!". Shaun and Frank continues to argue while Irene and Hannah begin to laugh along with Danielle and Rose. Paul, who had been silent up until now, pushes past Shaun and Frank and walks up to me. He grabs my hand from under the white sheet and mumbles something I can't make out. Shaun and Frank pounces onto Paul making all three of them fall to the floor. They all start to tug at each others hair and slap each other in the face. I step behind Danielle in the hope she might protect me. Danielle is dressed as a giant spider, I look over at Irene with pleading eyes. Irene, who is dressed as a mummy, walks over to stand beside Danielle, "Listen up, Connie is dancing with us!", she says firmly. All three boys look up at Irene, "Butt out of this, Blondie!", they all say in unison. Cornell comes to stand behind the boys, his face set in anger, "What do you think you are doing?!", he demands. Frank stands up, "Asking your daughter to dance", he responds, straightening his back and crossing his arms behind him as if he were a soldier talking to a general. The other two copy him, Cornell shakes his head in disapproval, "None of you are fit to protect my daughter … nevermind dance with her!". All three boys hang there heads in disappointment. Cornell points to Shaun, "Fifty push-ups now!", Cornell orders. Shaun instantly falls to the floor where he begins to do push-ups. Cornell then orders Frank to do star jumps and Paul to do a power walk. I soon find myself laughing along with my friends.

 **Kay**

Me, Will and Stephanie stand and laugh as we watch Cornell deliver more orders to the three Raptor boys. "Lucky I don't have to do that!", Will laughs as he takes a big sip from from his cup of punch. "You should be careful about what you say, Will", I laugh, Will raises his eyebrows and smirks down at me, "Oh? And why is that?". I smile up at Will, "Because you might be next!", Will's face twists into panic, "please don't say that, Kay!". I can't help but giggle at the sight of Will panicked face. Will smiles down at me after a moment of watching me giggle at him. He reaches out his left hand and lifts my chin ever so slightly so that I am looking up into his eyes. Connie has made me and Will wear eye contacts so Will's eyes are now a blood red. I suddenly feel very hot and just know that I'm blushing as Will's eyes make me melt. "Please don't laugh me", Will says as he brings his face close to mine, "you know just how embarrassed I ge- …". Will suddenly clasps his hand over my eyes, "Will? What are you doing?!", I cry out, when Will doesn't answer I peep through the gaps between his fingers. I can see Stephanie with one hand over Connie's eyes and one hand over her own whilst yelling for someone to fetch her bat. Now I can see Fred, his shirt off revealing his bare chest while looking quite confused. I hear a howl and Phil comes running into view wielding Stephanie's emergency bat. Fred takes off running with Phil in tow, swinging the bat whenever he got the chance. Will removes his hand from my eyes and looks down at me worriedly, "You didn't see any of that did you?". I shake my head whilst crossing my fingers behind my back and holding in a laugh. We both have a couple more drinks before I tell Will I need to go to the bathroom and make my quick getaway.

I find Chris stood in the hallway exactly where he said he'd be. I approach him casually, "You got it?", I ask. Chris nods and hands me a small box. I take it and open it up, _yes this is it!_ I close the box and nod my approval at Chris, "Thanks". "So … who's the lucky man?", Chris asks in a playful sing song tone, I feel myself blush as I think back to when Will and I kissed earlier today, "Just the most handsome, adorable and dreamy boy ever to exist!". Chris grins at me, "I am so jealous, girl!", I giggle to myself.

 **Will**

I walk down the hallway and towards the bathroom to wait for Kay. But halfway I stop to find Kay talking to a boy with reddish hair and brown eyes. Kay's face is flushed and every time the boy says something she giggles. _Who the hell is this?!_ I find myself storming over to them, grabbing Kay's hand and yanking her away. "Will? How long were you there?", Kay asks as panic strikes her face. I look down at her, now in pure rage, "Long enough to see you sweet talking with other boys!", I tell at her. Kay looks astounded, "Sweet talking? What are you going on about?". I shake my head, "You know what? Nevermind!", I let go of Kay's hand and begin to walk off, "obviously I'm not a good enough boyfriend for you, so just go back to your dream boy over there!". "Wait Will!", I can hear Kay calling out for me but I just keep walking.

 **Kay**

Will leaves and Chris comes to stand by my side, " I've got to go find my sister, sorry about what happened, will you be alright?", I nod and give him a weak smile. After Chris leaves I begin to cry, pressing myself against the cold wall, I let my tears fall. I know my mascara is running down my face, but I don't care, I just cry my heart out. At that very moment the lights go out. Everything is black and I can't see anything. I can hear some screaming and shouting … _maybe if I walk towards the stairs I can find Cornell or Stephanie!_ I slowly make my way through the dark but trip and sprain my ankle. The fresh pain spiralling through my ankle and up my leg causes me to let out a cry. After a few minutes if sobbing in pain I begin to crawl across the floor, feeling along the walls as I go for a window. When I find one I use the sill to pull myself up. I open the window and lean out. Below me I can just about see Will in the dark. He kicks some stones and pouts whilst pacing in front of the house … _is he sulking?_ "Will!", I call down to him, Will looks up at me with a shocked expression on his face, "Kay?", Will squints up at me, "Are you crying, why are the lights out?". I'm putting too much pressure on my ankle and the pain soon causes my knees to buckle. "Kay!", Will shouts as I fall from his sight.

 **Will**

I race in the house to find all the lights off, _must have been a blackout!_ I fumble about in the dark until I find the stairs. I carefully climb the stairs and walk down the hallway, I don't want to run incase I hurt Kay. "Kay?", I call into the dark, "I'm here!", I follow Kay's voice until I find her say on the floor. I reach out and pull her into my arms. Kay buries her head into my shoulder and sobs hard. "What's the matter?", I ask even though I know it is stupid, "I hurt my ankle", Kay sobs, I can feel her trembling in my arms. "I'm sorry I yelled at you", I mutter as Kay continues to cry. "Tell anyone I cried and I'll set Theasus on you!", Kay say, her voice muffled by my clothing. I can't help but smile at her threat, "Understood", I say.

The list come back on and I can hear everyone in the basement cheering as the music comes back on. Kay looks up at me and I can see the tears in her bright blue eyes. She holds up a small box and smiles, "Surprise!". I take the box from Kay, "What is this?", I ask, "It is what I was talking to the boy about earlier", Kay explains and I instantly begin to feel stupid. "So you two weren't flirting?", I ask, looking down at a smiling Kay, "Nope, he's gay with a boyfriend back at his home tribe". "Jeez, I'm such an idiot!", I groan as Kay begins to giggle, "open your present, ya idiot!". I laugh and open the small box. Inside the box are two little metal bats, one in the form of a brooch and the other a hairpin. Kay takes the hairpin and slips into her hair and I take the brooch and attach it to the pocket of my blazer. "Now we match!", Kay says happily as she kisses my cheek gently.

 **Connie**

Me and Fred creep up to Will's room, after he and Kay had a fight we all decided to get a bit of revenge on him. Fred opens the door and steps inside. Will is in the bathroom, I can hear the taps running. I watch as Fred dives under the bed and lies in a certain position so that his left arm and neck is visible. I had gotten some of his clothes and ripped them slightly so that he looks like he has been in a fight. I also got some dark red paint and splattered it on his clothes and drew scars on his arms as well as bite marks on his neck. As soon as he is in position I let out a howl. Will comes running out of the bathroom, his face paint smudged across his face. I dodge out of sight so that Will can't see me. "Who's there?", I hear Will call out, "Oh my god!", Will exclaims. I hold back a giggle as I tie the rope in my hand around my waist. Mist comes flowing down the hallway and Cornell comes up behind me, grabbing the other end if the rope and chucking it in the air so that it hangs over one of the beams on the ceiling. He then gently pulls on it so that I lift into the air. Will comes racing out if his room just in time, "Someone help, Fred is dead!". Will's eyes open with fright when he sees me hanging in the air. I had put on white face paint and a long white, bloodstained dress. "C-C-Connie?", Will stammers, taking a step back. I slowly raise my hand and point at him, "Will", I moan, "You killed me Will!". "What?", Splutters Will, "I did this? Did I kill Fred too?". Now Stephanie comes to stand by Cornell, "You killed our daughter!", She says angrily. Cornell also joins in, "You murderer!". Phil and Theasus come up to my right, Kay had told Theasus that Will had hurt her which has sends him wild whenever he smells or sees Will. Phil holds him back by the reins. Phil gives Will a dark look, "You killed out clover!". Kay now comes up in front of us, Will is now shaking in pure fear. Kay shuffles as she walks, her hair dangling over her face, "You killed my sister!", she says angrily, a wooden stake in hand, "Now I'll kill you!". Kay lunges forwards, bringing the stake up and crashing down to Will chest. Will scrunches his eyes shut.

 **Kay**

"Okay that's enough everyone!", I say as I pull away from Will who opens his eyes and looks at me with quivering eyes. "Aww", Fred groans from the doorway of Will's room, "do we have to?". "Yes!", I say firmly as Will looks around at him in a confounded manner. Connie bursts out laughing, swinging back and forth on the rope holding her in the air. Phil also snorts with laughter as he walks away with Theasus. "But didn't I kill them?", Will asks, looking at me with his scared, misty eyes. I laugh, "Nope, it was just prank to get revenge for earlier!". Will looks at me blankly for awhile before smirking and pulling me into a hug, "You sly little bat!", he chuckles. I look up at Will, "Sorry if I scared you but you did have it coming!", I smirk at him. Will let's out a deep sigh, "I seriously thought you were going to kill me!", he says, I giggle at him. "Let's get you to bed Connie", Stephanie says as she unties the rope around Connie's waist. "Okay, night Kay, night Wimpy Will!", Connie says as she walks off to bed. Will looks up with a smirk, "What did you just call me?", I laugh as Will continues, "Jeez, the nerve if that kid!". Will then takes my hand in his and leads me to his room, "Will, I need to go to bed!", I protest, Will shakes his head, "After the scare you just gave me, I'll need the company tonight!". He takes me to his room and sits me down on his bed. "Stay here while I go and get this face paint off", I nod and look about, his walls are a bright blue and the floor has a white carpet. There are drawings on the walls, mostly of a woman and man and two boys. Some were of him and Phil and others were of Stephanie and Cornell. But the one that catches my eye is the one nearest to the bed. It is of a girl with long wavy hair and delicate facial features … _is that me?_ Will comes back in, but he doesn't say a word. He just come up to the bed and collapses right next to me. "Um … Will, I really need to go!", I plead, giving him my puppy dog eyes. Will scrunches his eyes shut, "Nope, not looking!", he reaches out and puts his arm around my waist, pulling himself up so that his head is resting in my lap. I soon hear snores and realise that there is no way out of this.

The next morning I wake up to find Will's arms wrapped around me. I am lying in his bed with my back against his chest. He seems to be mumbling in his sleep … but I can't make out what he is saying. I look up and freeze. Right in front of the bed is Cornell, still in his Halloween costume and looking very mad. He clears his throat and Will stirs. "Kay, what is it?", he moans as he opens his eyes. Will sees Cornell and instantly looks terrified. Cornell growls at Will, "I'm gonna kill ya!", he says as he lunges at Will who scrambles off the bed and dodges, past Cornell, out the room. "GO WILL, RUN!", I hear Phil yell as Cornell charges down the hallway. I get up and races to the window and watch as Will come to stand below me. "Please, Kay", he begs, "Please tell your dad to stop!", I put a finger to my lips as if to think over his request before shaking my head, "Nope, I think it's more fun to watch". Will let's out a groan, "Your mean!". Cornell comes racing down to meet Will on the back of Theasus. "Ahhh!", Will screams before racing off. I laugh as I watch Cornell chase Will in circles around the house. Jeff jumps up onto the sill beside me and sticks his tongue out at Will whilst throwing berries at him. "NO JEFF, BAD MONKEY!", Will yells up at him. However Jeff just blows a raspberry at him. I giggle as the argument between man and monkey escalates. _Well this Halloween certainly was interesting!_

Thank you for taking the time to read my stories. I just want thank my best friend Jade who inspired one of the main characters for my story. She helped me with this story a lot really and if it wasn't for her then I wouldn't have wrote it in the first place. Also I want to thank Nick and Rachel for showing an interest in my stories, it really helped me to continue writing something that they enjoy reading.


	14. Chapter 13

**Cornell**

I sit in my office surrounded by paper and maps. It's been eleven days since the Halloween party, though I still have Will on barn duty. It doesn't seem to bother him as much as it did at first. Probably because Kay visits him daily to give him breaks and refreshments. _I'll have to think up a worse punishment for him!_ I grab a map and open it up, it shows the location of the Lymantria tribe, I'm thinking about taking us all on a trip over there. It would be the perfect punishment for Will since he is very vulnerable to extreme heat. I laugh to myself and put the nap to one side whilst taking out another. This one contains the exact whereabouts if my father's tribe. I have recently received a letter from him, asking me to visit him as soon as possible, and it would be nice seeing as me and Stephanie are now a couple and Kay and Connie are now are kids. I think we will leave to go there in a few days, just the four of us. A knock on the door of my office alerts me that someone wants to see me. "Come on in!", I call and the door slowly opens. Stephanie steps in and grins at me, "Hey there, Big Guy!", I smile up at her, "Hey my little Bad Girl!", I laugh as she comes to stand behind me and massage my shoulders. "Mmm … that feels good", I say as Stephanie continues with her massage, "Good, cause you deserve it", she whispers I into my ear. "Is that your father's tribe?", Stephanie asks, looking over at the maps, "Yeah, I'm thinking about going up to see him in a few days, just the four of us". Stephanie leans in and kisses my cheek, "Sounds great honey", she says.

 **Will**

Me and Phil walk out of the house, he has agreed to help me out in the barn today. Even though it was hectic the first day, it actually turned out to be the best punishment ever, I work my back out and then Kay comes with cold drinks and kisses me better. And now Phil is helping me so that it gets done faster. We both turn to go down to the barn when something makes Phil stop in his tracks with an angry look on his face. I look up and see a man, a few years older than me with short blonde hair and bright blue eyes … like Kay. Phil takes a step towards the man, "What the hell are you doing here?!", he spits. The man turns his head to face us, he has a black eye on the right side of his face and his clothes are all dirty. _He looks as if he has had a bad time …_ the man takes a wobbly step towards us, "Where is Kay?", he asks in a trembling voice. I examine his clothes, a red hide top and black hide bottoms, on his top is a big picture of a black skull. I recognise the the symbol to be that of the Black Skull tribe and feel myself tense up. "That's none of your business!", I yell at the man who looks up at me, "please…", he begs, his eyes meeting mine, "... I need to see my sister". _Sister? But why would Kay's brother be in the Black Skull tribe?_ As I ponder this I hear footsteps behind me, I turn to see Cornell and Stephanie. "What is he doing here?", Cornell asks Phil who shrugs, "Get lost!", Stephanie yells. The man takes yet another step forward, all if his pain showing on his face, "Go away before we wail on ya!", Cornell yells at him. The man's eyes wobble as they try to focus on Cornell, _he must be really injured … but why?_ "Why are you here?", Kay now comes to stand by my side, looking pained at the very sight of her brother. The man looks at Kay and tears start to swell up in his eyes, "Kay…", the man stumbles forwards and before I know what's happening, Kay races forwards and catches the man before he hits the ground. "Sam", Kay says as the man leans against her, "what happened to you?", Kay slowly lifts Sam's face up slightly so that she can see his black eye. "When the Black Skull tribe learned that you and that other girl had been adopted by the leader of the Terror Bird tribe, they went berserk", Sam explains as tears roll his face and onto Kay's top, "One day I heard them talking about using you to get to the girl. I told them that they couldn't cause it would break their promise … but they just kicked me out their tribe and said the deal was off. They hurt me over and over again, calling me a weakling all the time they were doing it!". _Sam looks as if he's about to pass out!_ "What deal?", Kay asks, searching his eyes for an answer, Sam looks up into his sister's eyes, "When the Black Skull tribe attacked ours, all those years ago, I went to find you and mum, they found me first. I begged them to leave our tribe alone but they just laughed at me. They said that if I joined their tribe … they would leave any survivors of the Sabretooth tribe alone". Kay's eyes go wide with surprise as she hugs her brother close, "But I am the only one who survived!", she whispers, Sam sobs into Kay's shoulder.

 **Kay**

I sit by Sam's bed. He was so tired that I asked Cornell if I could take him to the guest room. Will has went to get him some ice and Phil is scouting the woods and nearby area just incase. "You know I heard rumours", Sam says, his eyes closed and his voice hoarse, "That someone tried to rape you". I look down at my hands, I don't like thinking back to that moment … _how does the Black Skull tribe know about that?_ I look up at Sam and give him a gentle smile, "What you heard is true", Sam suddenly sits up in his bed and grabs my shoulders, "What?!". I look into his eyes in a bewildered state, "Please calm down", I say, "Calm down?!", Sam shakes me slightly as he yells this, "How can I be calm when someone sexualy harassed you!". "Nothing happened, Will managed to stop him before he could", I say quickly as Sam continues to turn red with rage and panic. "Are you sure?", Sam asks, I nod and he collapses back on the bed whilst massaging his temple. We both sit in silence for awhile before Sam takes a deep breath and looks up at me, "Is this Will fellow your boyfriend?", he asks. I nod as he slowly sits back up, "He must be really strong and brave if you've taken a liking to him!", Sam laughs to himself. Just as Sam says this, Will opens the door and walks in with a bowl and a cloth. He smiles at me and walks over to the bed, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Jeffrey was having a tantrum", he says as he hands me the bowl. "What kind of tantrum?", I ask, _I always love hearing about Jeffrey incidents._ "Well Fred wasn't letting me past when I was trying to get out of the kitchen so Jeffrey starting flinging some stuff at him", Will explains, looking slightly uncomfortable. "What kind of stuff?", I ask, raising my eyebrow slightly, "Let's just say it stunk!", Will says this while scratching the back of his head. "Ew!", I exclaim, _hopefully Fred doesn't smell like monkey faeces the next time I see him!_ Sam clears his throat and we both turn to face him, "Sorry Sam!", I say quickly whilst gathering some ice up in the cloth and tying the ends together. "So what's your name?", Sam asks Will as I prepare the ice for his eye. The expression on Sam's face is almost like he's laughing at Will, _he must feel superior to him._ "Will Mathews", as Will gives his name to Sam I realise that I never asked about Will's last name … his last name is actually pretty normal compared to mine. Sam looks shocked, "You're Kay's boyfriend?", he asks, almost in disbelief, Will nods with a happy smile on his face. Sam's face soon turns to disgust as he looks Will up and then down. I taken advantage if Sam's distracted state by putting the ice pack on Sam's eye and pressing down slightly so that Sam collapses back on the bed. "Ow!", Sam exclaims as he winces in pain, "Kay!", I smile down at my brother in a cheeky manner, "Yeah big bro?".

 **Connie**

 _I have been searching for Kay and Will for ages now._ I stop and look round the barn for one final time … but there's no one in here. Kay had promised to help me with my writing today but when she didn't come to my room I decided to go and find her. She wasn't in her room and I didn't see her on my way over here … _maybe she forgot?_ I let out a sigh and make my way over to Lightning's pen, Will had said that he was old enough to ride now … _if I fly over the woods I should be able to if Kay is in there._ Lightning looks at me with his golden eyes as I lean in the pen's gate, he walks over and nudges me with his head, pleading me for attention. I smile and gently stroke the top of his head … _his white feathers are so soft._ Lightning chirps with excitement as I open the gate for him. The snow white bird trots out of his pen and follows me as I walk towards the barn doors. Theasus must have sensed I am looking for his mistress since he is pacing restlessly in his pen. I stop just before I reach the door so that I am looking Theasus in the eye, "Don't worry, I'll find Kay so you just relax". At my words Theasus instantly calms down as he watches me leave the barn with Lightning close behind. I close the barn door and turn to Lightning who waits patiently for me, "I need to find Kay", I say as I walk over to Lightning's side, "Will you help me?". Lightning chirps, as if to replying to my request. Lightning bows slightly to make it easier for me to get on his back. I climb up and sit on Lightning's back who straightens up as soon as I am safely seated. I lean over and hug Lightning's neck, "Lets fly over the woods, okay?", I say and Lightning instantly let's out a chirp of agreement as he flaps his wings. We begin to rise in the air and I tighten my grip on Lightning's neck but being careful not to strangle him. We fly over the woods and I peer down at the trees, looking about for any sign of Kay. This is my first time flying, _it's kind of scary being up this high_ … as I think this Lightning starts to lose altitude. "Hey, what's wrong?", I ask as Lightning flies closer to the trees, but the bird merely chirps in response. I suddenly realised that he must have sensed my discomfort and decided to fly closer to the ground. We swing round and fly back to the house, "If she's not in the barn or the woods then she must be in the house somewhere". We land outside the barn and I slip down to the ground, "Thanks a lot Lightning, let's get you back in your pen, okay?", I say, stroking Lightning's feathery head. Once I have put Lightning back in his pen I walk back towards the house. _Kay could be with Will, if so I shouldn't bother her_. I walk into the house and look about. _I can't hear anyone … maybe their out?_ I sigh to myself and make my way to the kitchen to get a snack and drink. I almost scream as I nearly bump into Cornell. Cornell looks angrily down at me, "Where were you?", He demands. I take a step back and look down at my feet, "I was just looking for Kay", I say quietly. Cornell rubs his temple with his index and middle fingers whilst sighing to himself, "You had me and Stephanie worried sick!", Cornell says as he bends down and pulls me into a hug. "I'm sorry", I say this calmly even though I'm really struggling to hold back tears. We stay there for a while before Stephanie comes downstairs with Kay, Will and someone else. I look up and examine the new person as Cornell releases me and stands back up. This person has golden blonde hair and bright blue eyes, like Kay … his clothes consist of red bottoms and top with a big black skull on the front. I panic and race behind Cornell as he comes closer. _Is he here to take me away?_ "It's okay", Kay says as she approaches me, "He's my brother, he won't hurt you". Still unsure I move from behind Cornell and walk towards Kay's brother who smiles and holds out his hand, "I'm Sam", he says. I hesitantly take his hand and mumble my name.

 **Stephanie**

We are all sat down and enjoying a meal at the table. Sam has settled down nicely and is managing to eat his food. Though I can see that there is some pain in his jaw. It should heal up soon but if the pain is worse tomorrow then I'll have to check it out. Kay is sat by Sam who is sat in my right. Cornell is sat on my left and Connie is sat by Cornell. I have noticed that Connie is very wary of Sam. She probably feels nervous since he was part of the Black Skull tribe. _I hope she warms up to him soon_. On Connie's left is Fred who is sat next to Phil. This leaves one seat left … Will is sat next to Kay. Sam seems to be giving Will an awful lot of disgusted looks, he's probably just being protective of his little sister. I eat up my food, Kay had helped me with tonight's meal and together we managed to make chilli con carne and for dessert I have made a tintoberry pie which I'll serve with some ice cream I made the other day. Connie should really like it since she loves tintoberries. I finish my food and get up to wash my plate. I wait patiently until everyone else has finished before I begin serving dessert. Connie instantly smiles with excitement when the smell of tintoberry pie reaches her nostrils. She wolf's her pie down and washes her plate, she then races back to the table and smiles at me, giving me her silent thanks. Kay takes her time with her pie, savouring every mouthful. I smile as I think of everyone's reactions, Connie can't get enough, Kay wants to remember the taste and everyone else seems to be really enjoying their food. Cornell stands up from beside me and clears his throat, "In a couple days time I will be going to visit my father", he announces, "I will be taking Stephanie, Kay, Connie and Sam with me". Will stares at Cornell open mouthed as he sits back down and continues to eat. _This is probably the worst possible punishment for him,_ I laugh to myself as Will almost bursts into tears. A few days away from Kay can't hurt him … _right?_ But he's not the only one who doesn't look happy, Fred is sat looking very distant whilst gazing at Kay. And Phil is death staring Sam. Kay looks over at Connie, "I wonder what Cornell's dad is like?", she inquires, ignoring Sam who is smirking evilly at Will. Connie shrugs, "Don't know, when are we going Cornell?", Cornell looks down at Connie, he looks sad for some reason, "In a few days", he replies. _I wonder what the girls will think ..._


	15. Chapter 14

**Connie**

It's the night before our trip to Cornell's dad's tribe. I'm getting ready for the journey tomorrow. Stephanie had said to pack some toys and things to do on our journey. She had told me not to pack clothes since she had made some for me and wanted me to try them out. It's 7:00 pm and I have packed TB, some paper and pencils and three other things; a wooden doll that Phil made me, some doll clothes that Stephanie made and a book that Kay gave me. The book is meant to help with my reading. I look about my room, feeling a little nervous about leaving. I know I have left this place fore when we all visited the Raptor tribe … _but for some reason I feel uncomfortable at the thought of going to Cornell's dad's tribe._ I take a deep breath and sit down on my bed. Looking at my feet I realise just how used to wearing shoes I have become. Back when I was in the Black Skull tribe they never really took care of me, I had to make my own food and mend my own clothes. Because of this I never really had the time to make any shoes meaning I was always barefoot. My feet were always cold … but now they are so warm. I stand up and walk over to the door. It's now 7:20 pm and I'm starting to get a little hungry so leave my room and walk down the hallway and downstairs. I'm surprised to see Phil and Sam in the kitchen. But I'm even more surprised to see that Phil is giving Sam tips on bodybuilding. "The trick to effectively and steadily increasing your strength and muscles, is a healthy diet and constant exercise!", Phil says matter of factly. Sam nods while Listening with a serious face, "Yes, that sounds about right. What would you suggest?", Sam asks. Phil shrugs, "A quick run every morning and then one more later on, during the day try to keep on your feet, unless eating or doing a job that requires you to sit down. But a rest now and then would be advised", Phil replies. Sam smiles, "Okay, thanks buddy!", I don't know why but I feel slightly panicked while I watch the two talk like this. _Neither of them are in the Black Skull tribe any more so why am I panicking?_ Phil spots me and looks over at me, "Hey Connie, you hungry?", he asks with a smile on his face. I nod and walk over to where he is sat at the table, Phil gets up and walks over to the refrigerator and opens it. I sit down next to where Phil was sat and wait patiently for him. Sam smiles at me from the opposite side of the table, "Hi, Connie right?", he asks as he leans in. I nod but don't say anything, "I like your eyes", Sam's comment catches me off guard, "green is used to represent luck and good health y'know?". Well I must have been lucky to have ended up in this tribe … I look up at Sam and give him a weak smile. Phil sits back down next to me and puts a plate in front of me. I look down to find a dodo sandwich. The meat is still hot meaning Phil must have just cooked it. I wolf it down and give my thanks to Phil before being shooed back to bed. Now in my room it is 7:58. I quickly change into my pyjamas: a long nightgown which is white with a dark green ribbon around the waist. I climb into bed and close my eyes tight … _I wonder what tomorrow will be like?_

 **Kay**

I wake up early today due to Will cuddling into me. He's been really clingy theses past few days. I try to gently push him off but he just squeezes harder. "Oh Will…", I can't help but smile down at Will's face as he continues to sleep soundly through my struggles. Will let's out a soft moan before burying his face into my pyjama top. I giggle as he continues to moan into my stomach, "Stop it!", I cry out, "Stop it, that tickles!". Will's eyes open slowly and he looks up at me with confused and innocent eyes, "What's the matter Kay?", he asks. "Oh, Will. Please let me go!", I beg as I try to push Will off me one more time. But Will refuses to budge as he smiles up at me, "But why?", he asks, "Don't you like me hugging you?". I blush as I peer into his beaming face. _It's true that whenever I am in his arms I feel as if nothing else matters._ I give Will a smile, "I love it when you hug me, but I need to get ready to leave. And you remember the last time Cornell caught us in bed together", I say, "I guess you do have a point", Will admits as his grip on me starts to loosen. But just as I think I'm free, Will leans up and meets my lips with his. Our kiss lasts for a good few minutes before he pulls away, "I want to keep you as close as possible until you leave, that way I won't forget your warmth of your lips … or how soft you felt in my arms!". At hearing Will's words I can't help but tear up and kiss him back. This time the kiss lasts longer and is far deeper than the last one. "Now you'll never forget … and neither will I", I whisper when our kiss has ended. Will is about to say something when we hear a knock on the bedroom door, "Kay, you up sweetie?", Stephanie's voice drifts into the room and fills me with panic. Me and Will jump out of the bed, "Yeah, just one minute Stephanie and I'll let you in!", I yell as I race to the window and gesture Will to climb out. "Okay, I've brought a selection of clothes to take with us on our journey", Stephanie calls as Will climbs out of the window. I hurriedly race to the door and open it so that Stephanie can come in. "Hi, wow those clothes look so pretty!", I say as she comes into my room and looks around. "I made them all myself so they should fit you perfectly!", Stephanie says as she holds some clothes out to me. I receive a pair of dark blue dungarees, a white T-shirt and some plain socks, "Your hide jacket should go nicely with this!", Stephanie smiles as she puts the rest of the clothes down on my bed. After Stephanie has left I begin packing the clothes into a rucksack. I don't really have much I want to take except for my clothes and a few books … _one of which begins my diary_. I get changed into the dungarees and slip on my jacket. I check myself in the mirror and smile … _it doesn't look half bad_. I grab the rucksack and race out of the door.

 **Sam**

Me, Cornell, Stephanie and Connie all wait as Kay gives one last kiss to Will before we head off. Will is acting like it's the end of the world when it's only going to be for a few weeks. _I guess it just proves that he's not a real man!_ My sister deserves someone who can protect her and won't tear up over little things like this. I'm walking next to Theasus with Kay in front of me. Connie is on Lightning, her argentavis, hovering above us in the sky. Kay and Connie are wearing matching outfits; Kay is wearing a dark blue pair of dungarees, a white T-shirt and a dark coloured hide jacket while Connie is wearing a brown pair of dungarees and a dark green T-shirt. Cornell looks up at Connie, "You be careful up there!", Cornell yells up at the girl and her bird. Connie looks down and smirks before whispering something to Lightning. The bird flies right before doing a barrel roll and diving down to fly beside Cornell, "Sorry, what was that?", Connie smirks cheekily at Cornell. Cornell let's out a sigh, "Please Connie, you're going to give me a heart attack!". Connie giggles before flying a little higher. As I watch Connie smiles to herself as she soars above us, I remember when I used to sit with Dennis and Ellis; they used to laugh and talk about how 'the little brat' couldn't stand up for herself, how she'd tremble in fear every time someone came near her. _The Black Skull tribe really messed her up._ But this new tribe seems to be helping her quite a lot. Kay slows down so that she is walking beside me, "You're thinking about Connie, aren't you?", she asks, I look bewilderedly at her, "How did you know?", I counter. Kay laughs before answering, "You were staring up at her with a distant look on your face!", "Oh", I look down at my feet. When we were kids Kay was always able to tell when I had something on my mind … _at least that much hasn't changed_. "Yeah", I say as I look back up at the girl on her bird, "She was so fragile back at the Black Skull tribe, always afraid and so quiet", Kay listens with a knowing smile on her face, "But now she's more lively and … happy, it's amazing just how much this tribe has changed her!". "That's because she's made friends who care for her!", I turn to find Kay smiling gently up at Connie, "She's found herself a family and the new environment within that family has started to change her into … her!", Kay turns to face me and gives me a heartwarming smile, "She's Connie Clover, the youngest Marshall. And if anyone messes with her, all of the Terror Birds are going to be on their backs, including me, she knows this. She's happy because she feels safe!". I smile at Kay as she waves up to Connie who happily waves back. "What about you?", I ask, Kay's smile disappears as my question catches her off guard, "Do you feel safe?", Kay quickly smiles as she replies, "Of course I do!". Even though Kay says this with confidence, I can sense that there is something bothering her.

 **Cornell**

We have been walking for a full hour. The quetzal should be around here somewhere. Behind me I can hear Kay and Sam talking. I look up and see Connie flying down to land. "What's the matter?", I ask as Connie hops off Lightning who flies back up to soar above us, "I was starting to get pins and needles", she says as she starts to stretch her legs and runs up beside me. A few minutes later I spot the quetzal. The big bird shakes its head as we come closer. We all climb aboard the small hut on the quetzal's back. Theasus has his own little pen in the hut. Once everyone is settled down I sit down on the saddle and encourage the quetzal to take off. Once we are in the air I can instantly see my father's tribe, the Carno tribe. It's one of the biggest tribes around. As we near it I can hear flapping behind me and realise that we are being escorted by two men on pterodactyls. We land just outside the tribe. We all get off the quetzal and allow the two men to herd the quetzal away. The big metal doors open and we all walk in, standing there with a smile on his face is Matt, my father. He opens his arms wide as he gives each of us a big smile, "Welcome to the Carno tribe, I am Matt Marshall the leader of this tribe!", we all say our greetings and follow Matt as he leads us to the centre of the giant fortress. In the centre is a large, tower like building. Matt leads us straight through the doors and to a large elevator. We all get on as Matt continues to talk, "This tribe was created many years ago and was handed down from generation to generation. This building is where you will be staying, each of you will have your own room. Dinner's at seven so please don't be late!". When we reach the top Matt leads us to our rooms, "I'm pretty sure that your tribe was bigger than this", he says as he looks over his shoulder to examine each of us. I nod, "I thought it would be nice to bring my family here instead if the whole tribe!", I explain. Matt spins round on the spot, "These are kids?", he demands, I nod, "Since when did you have kids? You hid them from me, didn't you?!". Stephanie laughs from beside me, "Actually me and Cornell got together earlier in the year and we've adopted Connie. Kay and Sam a little while before Halloween". Matt's angry face softens and his replaced with a big grin, "I'M A GRANDDAD!", he yells as he fist pumps the air. I sigh as Matt continues to dance around all over the place. Eventually he stops and races up to Kay, "Wow, your so beautiful!", he compliments her, "And your about the same age as Maria!". I instantly recognise the name and look up at my father, "How old is she now?", I ask, Matt looks round at me, "That's right, the last time you saw her she was a little toddler!", he admits, "She's sixteen now and is a really good chemist!". Matt turns back round and continues to walk us to our rooms, "I have decided to move her into your tribe seeing as we have a lot if chemists up here and you don't have any. You will meet her tomorrow afternoon". _So Maria will be coming to the Terror Birds …_ "Are you sure it's such a good idea?", I ask as we all follow Matt, "Yeah, why do you ask?", he replies, "Well when I saw her she was so shy, she became panicked around loud things so easily!". Matt stops and rubs his chin, "It is true that she is uncomfortable around other people but that his the whole reason I am sending her to your tribe, being around people like you might do her some good!".

 **Kay**

I'm now in my room I look around. It is nicely furnished with a comfy bed, a wooden table and some chairs near the door and a cushioned armchair by the window. In the corner of the room is a small bookshelf where some books are stacked. One shelf has some romance, one has some drama while another consists of mainly historical and cooking books. The walls are all stone, giving the room a cozy and mediaeval feel to it. The bedding is a dark purple boarded with thin, dark blue lines. I sit down on my bed and take off my rucksack, the fireplace in the wall in front of me is small and slightly round which is kind of cute. I smile and collapse back on the bed. _I like my room back home but this room is just awesome!_ I sit back up and start going through my rucksack. I take out my clothes and put them away in the dresser beside my bed. I then put my books with the others on the bookshelf but separately so that they don't get mixed up with the others. I put my diary in with my clothes so that it isn't easy for anyone to find. Looking out the window I can see that the sun is about to set. I sigh as I think about Will, _how long will it be before we see each other again?_ It's now 6:50 pm. I walk to the door of my room and open it. I spot a small bob of dark brown hair and realise that Connie is sticking her head out the door of her room. "Hey Connie!", I call out to her. Connie turns to face me, "Hi Kay!", she greets me when she sees me, I step out my room and walk over to her, "You ready to go down for dinner?", I ask. Connie hesitates before stepping out of her room looking embarrassed. I can't help but snicker when I see what she is wearing. A white dress and sandals. The dress is frilly at the sleeves and hem. Connie shakes her head, "I hate being a girl!", she says angrily, "Oh come on, Connie, it looks cute", I say between laughs. Connie stomps her feet, "I look ridiculous!", I kneel down so that me and Connie are face to face, "Stephanie made it because she knew how adorable you'd look, I know you'd feel a lot more comfortable in something more functional but for today let's just wear what Stephanie wants us to … okay?". Connie hesitates but eventually nods her agreement and walks off slowly so that I can catch up and walk beside her, "Let's just get this over with!".

 **Sam**

 _I really don't like this situation …_ I'm sat at the dinner table, Matt is staring at me from across the table. Cornell and Stephanie are pretending not to notice while Connie keeps fidgeting in her seat and Kay is trying to engage Matt in a conversation. "... and then Jeffrey threw some mejoberries out the window at Will!", Kay and Matt both laugh as Kay tells him about what happened on Halloween. I can't help but feel fresh rage pump through me at the mention of the wimp's name. Matt smiles, "So I take it that this Will person is your boyfriend?", Kay nods happily, "He's really caring and kind, and he gives me a good laugh when I need it too!". I can't hold in my anger towards Kay's boyfriend any longer, "but he causes you a great deal of pain too … doesn't he?", I ask as I put my fork down. Kay looks bewildered, "W-what?", I look up at her, "You and the entire of the Terror Bird tribe got revenge on Will, but for what?". Kay looks down at her plate, "We just had a little fight, that's all", she says quietly. I raise my eyebrow at Kay's short answer, "A little fight? You deserve someone who won't cause you any grief, so why are you with a wimp like Will who can't even protect you?". Kay's expression switches from bewilderment to anger as she puts her fork down and gives me a hard stare, "Will may not be a gladiator or a flaming … war god … but he is the bravest person I have ever known, he makes mistakes. I mean who doesn't? At least he acknowledges his mistakes and attempts to fix them!". I find myself at a loss for words as Kay continues to eat her food with an angry expression on her face. I look back down at my food and begin to play with the dodo meat, pushing it around the plate with my fork. _Kay has been angry with me many times before, but something tells me I better not bring up that subject for a while._ I sigh and take a bite out of a bit of dodo. It takes a mere second for the flavour to burn my taste buds. "AAAH!", I cry out as I grab my drink. Everyone stares at me in shock as I clap my hands to my mouth. Kay tastes a piece of the dodo meat, savouring the flavour. A mere ten seconds later she bursts out laughing, "You seasoned the dodo meat with spices, didn't you?", Kay asks between laughs. Matt nods, "Only slightly, why?", Kay giggles a little before her answer, "Sam can't handle hot and spicy foods!". Soon everyone is laughing at me as I take drink after drink to cool my burning mouth. _Maybe dessert will be nice and sweet?_


	16. Chapter 15

**Will**

Me, Phil and Fred are all sat at the table in the kitchen. It's the morning after Kay left for the Carno tribe. _I really miss her_. I remember last night I actually crept into Kay's room and hid myself in her bed whilst breathing in her faint scent that lay on her pillow. _I think being away from Kay is starting to make me a little bit crazy._ I lay my head on the table and groan in boredom. Phil looks down at me and chuckles, "Missing ya girl, eh Lover Boy?", he says in a teasing tone. I don't even have the will to make a comeback back, I just wave my hand at him in defeat as he continues to laugh. Fred, who is sat next to me, also lets out a grumpy sigh. _It seems that we're all feeling down without the rest of our friends here._ Phil stands up and walks over to the refrigerator, opening it and peering inside, "We've got dodo lasagne, rock carrot soup and fish cakes", he says as he rummages around in the refrigerator. Fred looks over at Phil, "Aren't we supposed to wait until dinner to eat that?", he says with a raised eyebrow. Phil turns round to face him, "You seriously don't know, anything do you? In a situation let me this one, we have to eat all of the food so that when our friends get back they will feel guilty for leaving us behind!", _Phil can be really evil when he feels like it._ Phil turns back round and pulls out the lasagne before walking back to the table with a fork in hand. Fred watches as Phil stuffs his face, "I think we should rename you to Phil the Pig!", Fred laughs as Phil continues to fill his mouth with lasagne. I think back to when we were seeing our friends off, how soft Kay felt in my arms before I had to let her go. I sigh deeply to myself and find Fred and Phil glaring at me. "What?", I say as they drill holes into my skull, "You've only spent a day without her and you're already getting depressed!", Fred says with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah, well so are you!", I huff at him feeling myself becoming slightly angry, Fred doesn't even try to prove me wrong, he just lets out a moody huff and then turns to Phil. _Jerk!_ Fred watches for a moment before trying to hold a conversation, "So is this how you are back when you were a Black Skull?", Fred asked. Phil stopped eating, his eyes became distant and his fingers began to twitch. "I don't like thinking back to those days", he says as he drops his fork and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. "Why not?", Fred asks as he slumps back in his chair, "You had practically everything, respect, tons of food and probably a girl waiting for you in your room!". Phil shakes his head, "It's true that you would have those things … but at a price …". My ears begin to burn as I hear the conversation go on … _Phil was in the Black Skull tribe?!_ I begin to see red and my head starts to ache as I find myself standing up and reaching for the emergency bat. Phil and Fred look up at me in confusion as I hold the bat above my head, ready to bring it down on Phil's head. "YOU TRAITOR!", I yell as I swing the bat towards Phil who dives out of the way just in time. _I'll make him pay for hurting my Kay!_ I race after Phil who hurtles out if the room. Fred chases after us, "Please calm down Will, he's on our side now!", he yells after me. I ignore Fred as I continue swing the bat at Phil who for some reason is smiling as if he is enjoying this.

 **Kay**

 _For some reason I have this feeling that Will is in trouble …_ I'm with Stephanie as we walk down to her room. Apparently there is a party where we are all expected to wear formal clothing. Stephanie stayed up late last night making dresses and suits for us all. In Stephanie's room I see that there are two mannequins, both with dresses on. The first dress is a long sleek black one, the top sleeveless and cut so that it covers my chest. The second is a dark blue, the top frilly and the skirt just above the knees. I like both dresses but the blue one catches my eye. The black one is something I'd wear if Will was here. "Can I wear the blue one please?", I ask as Stephanie walks up beside me, "Of course, sweetie, just let me get it off the mannequin". Stephanie carefully pulls it off the mannequin and hands it to me with a pair of high heels, "When it's time for the party come to me before you go and I'll fix up your hair", Stephanie instructs me. Coming out of Stephanie's room I see Connie walking towards me looking very unhappy, "Hiya", I say as my sister strolls up to meet me. Connie stops and looks up at me, a faint smile crosses her face, "Hi, big sis!", she says gleefully. I smile as Connie goes into Stephanie's room to try on her dress. I walk down the tower's hallway and towards my room. Sam walks down to meet me, "Hey there Kay!", he greets me, _I'm still angry from last night but I think I should at least say hello._ I nod my head at my brother in response, "You going to Stephanie for your suit?", I ask, my brother nods, "Yep", Sam says, looking slightly awkward. I open the door to my room and wave my brother goodbye before stepping inside. Tonight I will meet Maria, a girl around my own age and a possible friend. I take a deep breath and start to strip, removing all of my clothing until all that is left is my underwear. I take the dress and slip into it, zipping up the back and observing myself in the wardrobe door mirror. The dress fits me perfectly and I find myself staring at my reflection. I never have been entirely fond of dresses but I think I wouldn't mind wearing this one again. I try on my heels, fastening the strap and walking around a little, they are surprisingly comfortable and I find myself spinning around in them. _Well this is what you get when Stephanie makes your clothes!_ I take my dress and heels off and put them neatly on my bed before putting my clothes back on. I walk out of my room and towards the elevator which takes me down to the bottom of the tower. I walk out of the tower and towards the large barn where people raced about with carnos, argentavis, pterodactyls, lymantriidae and other dinosaurs similar to that. I walk into the barn and look around, it consists of three floors, each packed full with tons and tons of pens. I don't know which one Theasus is in and I also promised to check on Lightning for Connie. Whilst I am panicking a girl with dark blue eyes and shoulder length black hair that has a blue shine to it. The girl must be around sixteen, she is tall and thin and her skin is slightly pale I indicating that she doesn't spend much time outside. The girl is wearing a long white cloth coat, some white cloth trousers, a light purple cloth top and black hide boots. A name tag is stuck to the breast pocket … _M. B. Anthony?_ The girl gives me a shy smile, "Hello, do you need some help?", she asks giving me a small wave of her hand, I smile and nod, "I'm sorry for troubling you but do you think you can tell me where two pens are?", I ask Ms Anthony. Ms Anthony smiles and nods, "Can you tell me their names?", she asks. I happily tell the girl about Theasus and Lightning who thinks for a minute and then shows me to the pen's which were place together so it would be easy to find them. "Is there anything else you need?", Ms Anthony asks, "No thank you miss, it was really kind of you to help me", I thank the girl. Ms Anthony shakes her head, "no problem, it was my pleasure", with that the girl walks off to a pen across the room. I turn to face Theasus who waltzes up to the metal fence to greet me, purring in pleasure when I stroke his snout. _Looks like this place has a lot of friendly people here,_ "How have they been treating you boy?", I ask as Theasus licks my hand like a dog would his master. Lightning in the pen next to Theasus's chirps excitedly when he catches sight of me, _he probably thinks Connie is here too._ I move away from Theasus and towards Lightning. The bird flaps around in agitation when he realises that Connie isn't here, "Connie will be here later, she asked me to check on you for her", I console the bird who seems to calm down at my words. After petting Theasus for a little while longer I walk back to the tower so that I can clean myself up ready for the party.

 **Cornell**

Me and my father walk down the hallway towards my and Stephanie's room to get our suits. "So how have things been going for you?", Matt asks, slapping me across the back. _Why does he always do that whenever I visit?_ "Good, I mean I have found the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with and some pretty good kids to call my own as well!", I say as I rub the sore bit on my back. Matt nods but looks doubtful, "What is it?", I ask when I see the look of doubt on his face. Matt takes a deep breath before he stops walking and turns to face me, "I heard that the Black Skull tribe declared war on the Terror Bird tribe". _What?!_ "I'm sorry what did you say?", I ask, wondering if I heard him wrong, "The Black Skull tribe has decided to declare war on your tribe, though the rumour did come from another tribe. But the Black Skull tribe has spies on the inside who have leaked info that they wish to declare war on your tribe", Matt says this calmly even though I am practically shaking in rage. _The nerve of those Black Skulls!_ Matt places a hand on my shoulder and looks into my eyes with a serious expression, "If you're in trouble then me and this whole tribe will be there to back you up son no matter what the cause is, but if it involves those kids then I need to know what is putting them in danger!". _I know I should explain but I can't right now …_ I take a deep breath to stop the shaking and look my father in the eyes, "I'll tell you later, I don't want Stephanie or anyone else to overhear us", I say in a cool manner, Matt nods his understanding and we continue to walk to my and Stephanie's room. As we reach the room the door opens and Connie walks out holding a white and dark green dress which was folded up into her arms, _she looks surprisingly happy despite it being a dress._ On top of the folded dress is a pair of white pumps. Connie races towards her bedroom, her shoes pitty-patting across the stone floor. I smile as Matt chuckles at my little girl. We both walk in and see Sam waiting for us with Stephanie, "Finally!", Stephanie exclaims as we come in, "Where have you been?", _I can't tell her this close to Christmas can I?_ Matt takes a step forwards, "Sorry, I sort of wanted to catch up with my son and we got a bit sidetracked on the way here", he says with a smile on his face, Stephanie let's out a sigh before smiling at us, "Alright then, just hurry up so I can give you your suits!". Stephanie shuffles through some jackets, waistcoats, shirts, trousers and ties until she has two piles of neatly folded clothing. She gives Sam a black jacket and trousers, a bright red waistcoat and tie, a white shirt and some smart shoes. Stephanie gives identical clothes except that they are bigger and the tie and waistcoat are a dark green. Matt follows as Sam and I both walk out of Stephanie's room and into the hallway, "Where's your suit?", I ask as Matt comes empty handed, "I've already got mine in my room", Matt shrugs. "So then why did you come with me to get my suit?", I ask with a raised eyebrow, Matt gives me a look that tells me that I already know, "I just wanted to catch up with my son". _He must have followed me to warn me about the Black Skulls!_ I smile and nod before walking back into my and Stephanie's room.

 **Stephanie**

The door opens and I swing around in a panic, grabbing my jacket and trying to hide my half naked body. _Jeez this is embarrassing!_ "Don't worry Steph, it's just me!", a cool voice drifts to my ears as strong arms wind around my stomach and pressing me against a strong and sturdy body. _Cornell?_ I look up and find myself staring into calm deep blue eyes that make me feel as if I am swimming through an ocean. _It's still embarrassing though!_ I let out a sigh and break free of Cornell's arms, my heart still beating fast from the panic he put me through. "I need to go for a shower, I'll be a minute", I say grumpily as I throw my jacket down on the bed. I walk across the room and into the bathroom where I remove my underwear and climb into the shower. The hot water hits my body and I immediately start to feel refreshed. I sigh out of pleasure as I scrub myself clean with a cloth and some soap. Suddenly I feel arms wrap around me and I give a little gasp of surprise. "What?!", I try to struggle in the grasp of hands all too familiar but the hands refuse to budge. I look up to see Cornell smirking mischievously down at me. "Let me go now Cornell!", I demand as I try to wiggle away, "Come on now Steph, we both know you like it!", _that cool and smug sounding voice really pisses me off!_ I try to fight back but Cornell simply moves his hand down to a more sensitive area that makes my back arch and my head roll back onto his bare and wet shoulder as he continues to massage and rub my naked body. I find myself moaning in pure pleasure as he kisses my neck. _I wonder if it's always going to be like this_ …

 **Connie**

I waltz around my room, confused on what I am meant to do. The party won't be for two more hours, what do they expect me to do until then? I stop and take a deep breath, _I brought some paper and pencils so I can do a little drawing until it's time for the party._ I walk over to the bedside table and open the draw, inside is; some paper, pencils and my doll and doll clothes. The book that Kay gave is lay on my bed next to TB ready for me to read tonight. I take the paper and a pencil and sit down on the floor. I try to think of something to draw but nothing comes to mind. I could practice drawing some flowers but that doesn't appeal to me very much. _I wonder what Kay is doing now?_ As i think about my older sister I start to remember back to when we first met. The image pops into my head, a girl with long wavy golden hair that shone in the sunlight. Those eyes that were filled with bright blue excitement. Before I know what is happening, my hand moves on its own jotting down the memory onto my paper. Half an hour later I find myself smiling down at Kay. _I don't mean to brag but it's almost identical!_ I giggle to myself as I slide to drawing into the bedside table draw. I go into the bathroom to clean myself up ready.

 **Sam**

In my room I fidget around, I feel bad about what said to Kay, I want to say sorry but at the same time I know that I won't bring myself to do it. Me and Kay both take after our mum, who's stubborn ways and pride ran through the entire of Sabertooth tribe. I can't tell her how sorry I am just yet but I'll do best to show her until then. It's 6:30 pm and I quickly change into my suit and smart shoes that Stephanie gave me, their surprisingly a perfect fit. I walk over to the window and peer out, it's twilight and I can see people moving around outside like crazy, but it isn't until my eyes adjust that I realise that people are actually trying to chase down an intruder. I race out of my room and into the hallway, Kay comes out of her room when she hears my door slam shut. She is wearing a dark blue dress, some black tights and blue high heels, her hair has been curled and bunched together so the majority is lay on her right shoulder."What's happening, are you okay?", Kay quickly asks as I race up to her, "Yeah but I think we have some intruders!", I reply. Me and Kay race to the entrance of the tower, a load of screaming and shouting is coming from outside. _What in the world is happening out there?_ A few seconds later the doors swing open and the first person I see is ... _Fred!_ "Fred? What are you doing here?", Kay asks, bewildered at the state Fred is in; torn clothes, scratches on his chest, arms and legs and clearly out of breath ... _did someone attack the tribe?_ Fred pants for breath as his eyes focus on Kay, "are you okay?", she asks, _I wonder where Phil and Will are._ Fred takes a wobbly step forwards, a smile starting to cross his face, "Kay?", joy begins to flood his eyes. Kay turns and runs off to the elevator as Fred chases after, "JUST LET ME LOVE YOU!", he yells. I turn to try and catch Fred to stop him from pestering my sister but as I do two more people race in through the doors. The first one is tall and dark haired, eyes black and wild … _Phil?_ The second one is so fast I can barely make out what he looks like, light brown hair, short but a bit taller than Kay, grey eyes … _looks a little like Will …_ the second man pounces on top of Phil, bat raised above his head. _That is Will!_ I watch as Will looks about him angrily, "Where's that Fred got to?!", he demands before he spots me, "He chased after Kay, they both went upstairs", I explain, a little confused about what was happening. Will jumps up off of Phil and races up the stairs to find Fred. I slowly make my way to help Phil up off of the floor, "What's going on here?", I ask as Phil tries to regain his breathing. After a moment Phil bursts out laughing, "After he learned that I was in the Black Skull tribe, Will went nuts and chased me and Fred all the way over here!". I took a moment, taking in this recent piece of information before beginning to laugh myself. _Maybe Will isn't such a wimp after all!_

 **Matt**

Waiting in the tower's top floor Cornell, Stephanie and little Connie all stand with me chatting and laughing amongst each other. Kay and Sam come through the doors and smile towards us. Behind them come faces all too familiar, _Phil, Will and Fred …_ I'm pretty sure they were left behind but I am happy that the entire Terror Bird tribe is here. The five all come over to join us. Will is stood between Kay and Fred, glaring at Fred as if he wished him dead. Phil looks hesitant as he takes his place beside Fred, almost as if he's scared he'll get battered if he goes anywhere near Will. I laugh as Will grabs Kay's hand possessively. Kay looks up at Will and smirks as the music changes to a more soft dancing tune. Kay pulls Will away and places one hand on his shoulder. Will places a hand on Kay's waist and begins to dance, Kay giggles as she follows Will's movements. I look back to Cornell and see someone stood behind him, a girl with shoulder length black hair and dark blue eyes, the girl is wearing; half framed glasses, a turtleneck pink top, a long pink skirt that flows to her ankles and pink pumps. A pinkish-brown and white jerboa clung to the girl's shoulder as she approaches calmly with a kind smile on her face. I clear my throat to draw the Terror Birds attention to the girl as she comes to stand in front of me. I turn to Cornell, "Son, this is Maria Bloom Anthony, the newest member of your tribe", everyone turns to face Maria, "Hello there, I'm Stephanie", Stephanie shakes Maria's hand as she introduces herself. Cornell, Connie, Phil, Fred, Will, Kay and Sam all do the same. _Maria should fit in just fine ..._


	17. Christmas Special part one

Fred

Why do I have to do this? I walk down the hallways with Connie, Stephanie made me take her out of the tower so that she can surprise her later. I don't see what the point is since it's just a few decorations. Connie doesn't have a clue so she seems to be pretty happy. "Hey, where are we going to anyway?", I ask as we near the door, Connie looks up at me with a smile, "I'm gonna go see Lightning today", she replies. I thought she might say that … we open the door and a cold breeze hits us, I shiver and am about to step out when I notice that Connie is wearing shorts and a top that doesn't cover her arms. "Aren't you cold?", I ask as she steps out, unfazed by the wintery weather, Connie nods, "Yeah but I'm used to it", Stephanie will kill me if Connie caught a cold … "Go back and get some warmer clothes on, be quick or I'll freeze out here!", I say in a cool, laid back tone. Connie nods and races inside, coming back ten minutes later wearing; a dark green dress with long sleeves, a long brown coat, thick black leggings and dark green warm calf suede boots with cute little black belts around the top. "Well don't you look pampered?", I say as she runs up to me, Connie makes a pouty face, "I'm lucky I managed to avoid the hair ribbon!", she says as she pulls a woolly hat out of her coat pocket and pulls it down over her hair, the green bobble bouncing about as she moved. She then follows me as I begin to walk to the Carno tribe's barn. Inside I can see tons of pens full with different kinds of animals … and even more people racing around us. I grab Connie's and pull her closer to me so that she doesn't get trampled. "How do we know which pen belongs to Lightning?", I ask as we walk to the centre of the barn. Connie looks around, her emerald eyes wandering over the many pens, "Kay said the Lighting is in the pen next to Theasus's", Connie says as she looks up at me, "So?", I ask, not understanding what Connie is trying to suggest. Connie holds a finger to her lips to signal for silence, I listen closely and smile when I hear the faint sounds of men screaming. Theasus doesn't trust anyone unless it's Kay or family, and it's feeding time! "Smart move Connie!", I sat before following the sound of screaming men. We stop just beside Theasus's pen, three men stood before it, all holding buckets and shakily trying to feed the raptor. I can't help but laugh to myself as I watch, a little while ago that would have been me! Connie let's go of my hand and take a bucket from one of the men, Theasus instantly changes from offensive to passive, stepping closer to the gate to poke his head out and dunk his head into the bucket of meat. The three men watch in amazement as Connie pats Theasus's head and walks off the Lightning's pen where the bird awaits impatiently, chirping continuously as if telling her to hurry up. I watch as Connie carefully strokes Lightning's feathery head, looking deep into his eyes as she does so. Before I know what is happening, Connie unlocks the pen gate and leads Lightning out of his pen, "What are you doing?", I demand as I try to push Lightning back in his pen, "I just wanna ride him!", Connie protests as she stands in front of me. I sigh and allow her to proceed with leading the bird away from the pen and out the barn. Lightning still doesn't have a saddle meaning it really isn't safe for Connie to ride him especially in this cold weather … but it's not like I can stop her anyway. Connie gets outside the barn and mounts Lightning, her face a big grin. But there is something wrong …

Maria

I am walking through the hallways, I have just finished packing all of my essentials ready for the move the the Terror Bird tribe. It is admittedly mostly books and chemicals, notes containing formulas and mixes for remedies and even poisons. People my age usually make fun of me for being interested in this sort of stuff, calling a witch and stuff like that. In fact there is only two others like me, the rest of the chemists are older; Roxanne, a girl with red hair and a purple streak in the left side of her fringe, she has chocolate brown eyes and fair skin. There is also Brian, a boy with light brown eyes, a mop of golden hair and tanned skin. Roxanne and Brian are actually a couple, though I didn't find out until after I got rejected by Brian who I had a crush on. I'm over it now but whenever I see Roxanne and Brian together I can't help but wish it was me. I stop by a window and sigh as I think about the loving look the couple share when they work on formulas in the lab. I look through the window in a daydream and instead find myself watching two people lead an argentavis out of the barn. The first is a young girl; maybe ten or eleven with dark brown hair covered with a dark green bobble hat. She has emerald green eyes and quite fair skin. She is wearing a long brown coat, underneath which is a dark green dress, her legs are covered in thick black leggings and on her feet are dark green, warm looking boots. I recognise the young child to be the daughter of Cornell, the leader of the Terror Birds. The second person is quite tall, his hair a dirty blonde, his eyes a honey brown. He's not as well built as Brian but I find myself liking what I see. The man is watching as the young girl mounts the bird. The man sighs and shakes his head, the girl looks over at him in question before allowing the man to reposition her legs. The man then gives a little gesture and the girl watches closely before leaning over and gently grasping either side of the bird's neck. The girl gently nudges the bird's belly with her foot and the bird takes off. The whole time the girl is flying the bird, the man is shouting instructions up at her. The girl weaves in and out around the sky, taking sharp turns and landing back safely on the ground. I can't help but smile and admire the man as he nods at the girl and chats to her. You have to admire a man who's good with kids!

Stephanie

Holding some red and green paper ribbons, I pin them into the ceiling whilst standing on a stool which I move around the room as I need it. Phil has some silver and white, glittery snowflakes which he is hanging around in the lounge. Cornell and Matt have two Christmas trees to decorate, one in the lounge and another in the dining room. We'll have to remodel our house when we get back, I'd love to live in a place like this! Will said earlier that he wants to spend the day with Kay, which I can understand. After this I have to get the wreath hung up on the door. Then I have to get Phil to help me with the stockings and presents, but it also means that we can't let Connie into the lounge until tomorrow morning. Luckily the last time I checked, Fred was giving Connie some flying lessons. I remember that Fred used to be a racer in his home tribe so teaching Connie how to professionally ride should come naturally. I hang up the last of my paper ribbons and head downstairs towards the door where I had put the decorations. Out of the bags I pull out a dark green pine leaf wreath and step outside to hang it on the door. The air is cold and I rub my arms as the air stings my throat. This'll be the first Christmas we'll spend as a family. I step back inside and close the door, the rest of the decorations are Christmas tree ones; fairy lights, tinsel, baubles, candy canes and the big star for the top of the tree. I walk to the elevator and it takes me to the top floor, I walk down the hallway and see Phil with a large sack thrown of his shoulder and ten stockings at his feet which I race to pick up. "Shall I go out these under the tree in the lounge?", Phil asks as I pick up the stockings, "Yeah, I'll put these around the fireplace", I reply. We both walk down to the lounge and go about ourselves making sure that everything is perfect. Phil finishes and walks off to help Fred with Connie. I go down to the kitchens to help with the Christmas eve party food. On my way I see Sam, he looks a little lost so I stop to talk with him, "Hi Sam, you okay?", I ask. Sam looks up at me, "Yeah, hi Steph. Have you seen Kay?". I smile kindly at Sam, "She's spending the day with Will", I explain, "So they're on a date?", Sam asks with a raised eyebrow, I nod and Sam sighs in expiration, "typical!", with that Sam walks off. Is everything alright with him?

Cornell

Me and my father are decorating the Christmas tree in the dining room, though we aren't really having fun. "I do know that for the Black Skull tribe to reach yours, they have to go round the island's beach, to go through the woods would be too dangerous", Matt states as he hangs a snowflake bauble on a branch of the tree. I shake my head, "Yes but they could have pterodactyls or argentavis, we have to keep that in mind", I say as I place a dark blue bauble on the tree. Matt rubs his chin with a spare hand, "Then I'll send some scouts about the area, they'll find out just what we are up against!". Matt turns to me and hands me the end to some fairy lights which I wrap around the tree. We then decorate the tree with tinsel and leave the dining room. It's lucky that we decorated the tree in the lounge first! I still haven't told the rest of the tribe about the declaration of war from the Black Skull tribe, it would be devastating if Stephanie and Phil walked in on us whilst we were talking. Matt goes to check on some paperwork and maps in his office and I am about to go find Connie when I spot Sam looking very angry and walking my way, "What's the matter", I ask as he nears me. Sam spots me and instantly changes from angry to calm, "Oh, hi Cornell, it's nothing", he responds quickly. I shake my head, "It's not nothing, come on now and tell me!", I say firmly. Sam sighs deeply, "It's Kay, I don't like the fact she's dating that wimp!", I smirk, at Sam's frustration, "So you would rather your sister dates a strong man who beats her?", I inquire. Sam looks outraged, "I don't want her to date at all!", Sam practically yells, I give a little laugh as Sam practically shakes with anger. "I get it, you're protective of sister, I can respect that. But you need to keep in mind that she's not a little kid anymore, she's sixteen and turning into a woman", I say calmly. Sam calms down and nods, "I'm sorry, it's just, after mum died I told myself that I wouldn't lose my sister", he says, looking at his feet. "And now that she has a boyfriend it's almost as if you have lost her", I place my hand on Sam's shoulder, "But you're in the Terror Birds now, we are all family, which means that we all look out for each other. I promise that no one is going to lose anyone!". Sam smiles up at me, his blue eyes a little teary, "Thank you". Me and Sam both walk down to see how Connie is doing. Hopefully Fred isn't dead …

Kay

Me and Will walk through the streets of Carno tribe, around the tower are houses, shops and even a police station. It's a very big place! Will seems to know the place like the back of his hand, he's probably been here more than a few times. Will stops and looks, over my shoulder, into a bakery with a smile on his face, "Wait here, the phiona-rolls here are out of this world!", he says as he races across to the bakery. I sit on the short wall and watch Will through the bakery window as he talks to the elderly woman who smiles and walks away to the is wearing; a long black coat, some dark jeans, some black work boots and his blue scarf. Will looks out to me and gives me a big grin, I smile back at him before looking about at the surrounding shops. There are; clothes stores, food stalls, jewellery shops and etc. One store catches my eye, in the large window there are all sorts of keychains, necklaces and ornaments on display. I stand up and walk over to the window. There are necklaces encrusted with pearls, gold, silver and even one with a jade stone. But what I am really interested in is a keychain; a silver ring and attached to that, a large key; silver with a big round head, in which is engraved a small heart and some writing. I smile as I read it, I want to get Will something like this, but I can't when he's coming back on a matter of minutes. And I want it to be a surprise for him. The shop closes at night and I won't be able to get it tomorrow either … what am I going to do? I almost jump as someone taps my shoulder, I turn and find Maria smiling at me. "Hi, Kay", she greets me, I smile back at her, "Hi Maria!". Maria is wearing white leggings, warm pink boots, a big pink coat, fluffy pink earmuffs and a white scarf. She looks over my shoulder and smiles as she sees the keychain, "You getting that for Will?", she asks. I stuff my hands in my pockets as the cold begins to sting them, "I want to but …", I look back at the bakery and see Will coming out holding two small paper bags. Maria looks over at Will then back at me, "It's alright, I'll get it for you and give it to you later", she says, I look back at her with a gleeful smile, "I'll pay you back, okay?". Maria nods before Will reaches us, "I'm so sorry Maria, if I knew you were joining us I would have got a third, do you want mine?", Will asks as he hands me my phiona-roll. Maria shakes her head, "No thanks, I was just saying hello, I've got a little bit of work to attend to", she says before turning, giving me a wink and walking off. I turn back to Will who is smiling down at me with a loving look in his eyes. I giggle as he slips his arms around my back and pulls me close to him, people smile as they walk past us. "Did you miss me this much?", I ask teasingly, Will presses his lips against mine, a passionate kiss which lasts for a long time. When he pulls away he touches my forehead with his own, "Does that answer your question?". Me and Will walk through the streets, hand in hand, laughing and talking sweet nothings to each other. I wish we could stay like this forever!

Will

Holding Kay's hand, I walk down the street and towards Jackson's Jewels. It a Jewellery shop where all the Jewellery is handmade as well as custom made. The shop owner agreed to make a bracelet I designed for Kay as a Christmas present. It's silver with pearls and dark blue gems. Hopefully I can distract Kay long enough to slip in and get the bracelet without Kay seeing … I turn and smile at Kay, she is wearing; a dark blue hoodie and a white coat over the top, some blue jeans, her usual boots and some blue hat and gloves. Kay returns the glance but Kay's eyes fall on something next to me and I turn to see a raptor walking right beside me, it's large teeth nearly right up against my cheek and it's blue feathers on it's head, wafting around in the breeze. "Th-th-Theasus!", I yell as I jump back away from the raptor who stops in confusion, "Theasus? How did you get out, boy?", Kay smirks as she walks up to the raptor who purrs as his mistress pats his head gently. Kay turns back to me, "Stay here while I put Theasus back in his pen will ya?", she smiles, I nod and watch her run off with Theasus close beside her. Now's my chance! I quickly race into Jackson's Jewels and come back out with a small black box which I tuck into my pocket and wait for Kay. Hopefully she'll like it. I look up and see Kay racing towards me, her eyes bright and her hair flowing behind her like a river. How did a wimp like me … end up with a beauty like her? I snap out of my daze as Kay appears in front of me, "Welcome back Mr daydream!", Kay laughs as she grabs my hand in hers. I smile, "Good to be back!", Hand in hand, we both walk down the streets of the Carno tribe and before we knew what was happening, it began to snow. Well I think I know a few people who are gonna have snowball wars later …

Sam

It's the afternoon, the sun halfway in the sky. We are all cheering Connie on, who is racing against Fred. They lap around the tower and race back, both in a tie. Fred leans over so he can talk to Connie, "Connie, I am totally going to win this time!", Fred gloats. Connie smirks, "Sorry to burst your bubble, Fred, but that's what you said the few hundred races that I beat you on!". Connie accelerates and flies past Fred, over the barn and to the ground safely. She slides off Lightning and fist pumps the air in victory, "Fred zero, Connie five!", Phil laughs as Fred lands next to Connie, looking very grumpy. I look over at Cornell, "should we go get ready for the party?", I ask. Cornell looks at me and nods before calling out to Connie and Fred, "put the birds away you two, time to go in!". Fred slips off his bird and leads it over to Connie and Lightning, "I'll take Lightning, you go in with Cornell and the others, I'll catch up with you!", he says. Connie smiles as Fred leads both birds away and back to the barn. Now joined by Connie, we all go back inside, as soon as Connie gets in the tower her eyes light up with excitement as she sees the snowflakes and paper ribbons dangling from the ceiling. I can't help but smile as I see her reaction. We all go in the elevator and to our separate rooms to get changed into our party clothes. In my room I change into some dark jeans, a white shirt which I tuck into my trousers and a no sleeve, v-neck, black jumper. I comb my hair back and slip on some smart shoes before stepping out of the room and into the hallway. I look to my right and see Will waiting outside Kay's room, he is wearing jeans, smart shoes, a white shirt and a grey blazer. The door opens and Kay steps out, her hair curled and half up, half down. She is wearing a dark blue dress that flows around just above her knees. On her feet are black high heels which clippity clop on the stone floor as she walks. Looks like my little sister has grown up.

Connie

I managed to get away with just taking off my coat. Stephanie was very insistent that I put on this long white dress with pink bows all over it. Even now just thinking about it makes me shiver in horror. In the dining room I can see the big Christmas tree, the lights flicker on and off, they look so pretty! Just as I am thinking this Kay walks in with Will, her blue dress catching my eye. I don't like dresses or anything that is super girly, but Kay's dress is beautiful. I race up to my older sister and smile up at her, "You look so pretty, Kay!", I say as she smiles down at me. Kay giggles, "Thanks, you too lil sis!". Sam walks in looking a little grumpy but not as much as he did earlier. He walks straight over to the dining table and pours himself a glass of wine which he gulps down almost immediately and pours himself another. Cornell and Stephanie walks into the dining room, Cornell is wearing; dark jeans, a dark green shirt and a black blazer. Stephanie is wearing a black dress, it's slim skirt touching the ground and it's short sleeves, made from lace. The belt is tied into a flimsy bow on the right side of her front. I smile as Stephanie walks past with Cornell at her side, his hand placed on Stephanie's shoulder. Phil and Fred come in next, Phil wearing jeans and a dark purple shirt and Fred wearing jeans, a white shirt and a brown waistcoat. Matt is already here and the only one wearing a smart black suit with bow tie and smart shoes. Matt raises a glass of red wine into the air and clears his throat, "Welcome, family, friends. The only time I really got to see my son was in dire circumstances. But now, not only has he graced me with his presence on Christmas, but also has brought me grandchildren, three to be exact. Thank you Cornell, Stephanie, for making me a grandad". We all clap our hands and Cornell goes to hug his father, I can see a hint of tears in his eyes. I walk towards the table where some food is laid out and pick up a plate which I place a small heap of food onto; mini phionas in blankets, some salad and some fish meat sandwiches. I walk over to one of the tower windows and sit down at a small table so that I can look out at the moon. It's big and bright tonight … it's very beautiful! I take a bite out of my sandwich and Stephanie comes to sit in front of me, her smile seeming to be as bright as the moon. There is only one other person whose smile was that bright … mom. I feel happy but sad at the same time as I smile up at her, "So do you like it here?", Stephanie asks after I have finished chewing. "Yeah", I say as I put my sandwich down, "We'll probably come back here often", Stephanie says as she looks over at Cornell and Matt. I nod and look over to see them both looking very serious, is something wrong? Stephanie seems to be worried too, I hope it isn't anything too serious. Stephanie looks back towards me, "Listen Connie", she says with a sad look on her face, "I know that I'll never replace your or Kay's mother, but I want to be there for you when you need me". I can feel myself beginning to tear up and look down at my hands, "Connie, are you okay?", I hear Stephanie ask, "did I upset you?". I shake my head and look back up, Stephanie gets up from her seat and walks round to me, pulls me into a hug and whispers into my ear, "I'm sorry if I said something I shouldn't, but just know that I will always be here for you". With that Stephanie walked off, leaving me to eat my food … but I'm not hungry anymore!

Fred

I walk over to Sam and pour myself a drink. It's still early in the night but Sam is already hammering down the drinks. He seems to like the red wine more than the white. Kay walks over to us, her dress showing off her smooth legs which I can't help but stare at. "Have you not quenched your thirst yet?", Kay inquires as she stops in front of Sam, "Lay off my case Kayleena!", Sam responses before gulping down the rest of his drink. Kay's face hardens with anger, "Don't call me that!", she almost growls, Sam smiles at her, "What, Kayleena?", he teases. Kay crosses her arms and death stares Sam, "You and I know very well that the only person who had the right to call me that was mother, now quit it with the misery drinking!", Sam simply turns round and pours himself another drink, ignoring his sister. Kay pushes past Sam and grabs the whole bottle of red wine, "I don't think you're old enough to drink that!", Sam states as Kay walks off with the red wine. "I don't think she's going to give it back", I say as Sam let's out a long sigh, "I know, she's just like mum, stubborn as hell!", "Your mum must have amazing", I smile as Sam drinks the last few drops of wine out of his glass, "Yeah, she was!". Sam stops, his eyes resting ahead of him, I look towards the object of his attention and see Connie, head rested on the table and eyes closed, she must be tired… Sam puts his glass down and walks over to her, giving her a little shake before getting her to climb onto his back. He then carries Connie out of the room who clings sleepily onto his back like a monkey. I can't help but smile as I watch them, even though Kay isn't the helpless little girl anymore, he still has his brotherly instincts. I turn around and pour myself another glass of white wine. Kay walks over next to me, "This is for when he comes back", she says before placing the bottle of red wine on the edge of the table with a sad look on her face. Kay walks off to Will and Stephanie, she's probably realised that to Sam it's as if he has lost his sister and found two more. I just hope that things will work out.

About twenty minutes later Sam comes back looking a little less grumpy. He sees the bottle of red wine and races over, seizing the bottle and taking large gulps of it. I laugh as I take a sip from my glass, and glance about; Phil is laughing with Matt and Cornell, Kay and Will are sweet talking with each other and Stephanie is talking to … Maria? I can't help but stare in awe as Maria smiles kindly at Stephanie, she is wearing a short pink dress which reaches just above her knees, the sleeves ending just below her elbows and the pretty glitter pattern swirling around her waist and up the top into a picture of twisting flowers. She looks kinda nice … Maria's deep blue eyes meet mine and a shy smile crosses her face. I look away feeling slightly embarrassed, why do I feel like this? I turn back round and grab the whole bottle of white wine and begin to gulp it down. Sam stumbles next to me, a wine bottle in each hand, "Hey … Freddy, my man!", he laughs as he slips his arm around my shoulder, putting all of his weight onto me, "Hi Sam", I say before taking another gulp of wine. Sam nods over at Will and Kay, "That Will dude is such a wimp, am I right?", I laugh as Sam continues to diss Will.

About an hour later, me and Sam are both wobbling around, drunken with no sense of direction. "Think you can handle anymore wine?", Sam asks, "Nah!", I say as I woke towards the door, "Yeah, I think I'm gonna go and throw up!", Sam and I both walk out into the hallway, Sam goes to his room but I go downstairs and outside where I proceed to gaze up at the stars. The bright moon shines down on me, almost as of sending a message from above. It's really cold out tonight, the snow coming down and covering the ground, it looks like it's starting to stick …

After about an hour I walk back inside the tower and make my way to the elevator. I am still fairly drunk so I have to lean on the side of the elevator in order to stay stood up. As I near the top of the tower I begin to hear voices, the first is a female's voice which I recognise to be Kay's, the second is male voice but I am too focused on Kay's voice to try and recognise who's it is. The elevator reaches the top floor and I step out, lunging forwards. My vision is blurry so I close my eyes tightly, something soft enters my arms and I press my lips against those of another, they are warm and soft and oddly sweet … like tintoberries. A tapping on my shoulder alerts me to someone behind me. I break away from my kiss and glance behind me, at first it is all blurry but as my sight adjusts I can make out the uncomfortable smile of Kay. "Oh, hey Kay", I give her a big smile, "... Wait! If you're there then who's-", I turn back round to find a very angry looking Will staring back at me. I quickly unhand Will and race off down the hallway, "FRED!", Will shouts after me and I hear heavy footsteps behind me. I really got myself into trouble this time!


	18. Christmas Special part two

**Connie**

My eyes open to a soft light drifting through the window, creating a halo like effect around my head. I slowly sit up my bare feet touching the cold stone floor. _I don't remember going to bed …_ I look over my clothing and realise that I'm still wearing the clothes from yesterday, "I must have fell asleep at the party", I say to myself. I stand up and walk over to the window and peer out. "Wow!", I breathe as I stare down at the white carpet which covers the ground. The snow coats the tips of every building below the tower, like icing sugar on top of cakes … _now I'm hungry!_ My belly begins to rumble, signalling for food. I walk over to the wardrobe and pick out some clothes; a pretty looking dress that has a dark green top with six black buttons on the front and slightly puffy shoulders but long sleeves and a short green and black tartan pattern skirt. As well as some black leggings and my boots from yesterday. _This lot should be warm but keep Stephanie off my back at the same time_. I get dressed and walk over to the dresser so I can peer into the mirror, _my hair's a mess!_ I take up the hairbrush and try to tame my lion's mane. When my hair is neat enough I clip the sides back with a few hairclips Stephanie left on my dresser and proceed to the bathroom to do my business and to brush my teeth. I then wash my face and return to my room, it isn't until I'm on my bed, hugging TB, that I realise what day it is, "IT'S CHRISTMAS!", I yell at the top of my lungs as I race to the door. With TB still in my arms I race into the hallway and down to Kay's room. I bang loudly on the door and it slowly opens, Kay's sleepy face peers out at me. It takes her a few moments to realise that it's me, "Oh, morning Connie", Kay says sleepily, "What's the matter?". I jump up and down in excitement, "It's Christmas!", I tell her, Kay gives me a smile, "I would never guess!", She laughs, her eyes following TB as I jump up and down on the spot, "Isn't that the teddy Stephanie gave you?". I look down at TB, _I forgot to put him down before leaving my room!_ I nod as memories from last night start to come back, " _I know that I'll never replace your or Kay's mother, but I want to be there for you when you need me"._ I look back up at Kay and smile, hiding my sadness with excitement. Sleepy male groans drift from our of Kay's room, I try to look over Kay's shoulder but she steps forward and closes the door behind her in a panic. I want to ask her about the noises but decide not to when I take in Kay's panicked expression, "I'm going to the lounge, you coming?", I ask instead. Kay looks slightly relieved as she give me her answer, "You go on ahead, I'll just get ready and meet you there!", she says before stepping back into her room. Just as she opens the door I spot the very tip of someone's toes at the bottom of Kay's bed. I call out to Kay just before she closes the door again, "yeah?", she smiles at me, "don't worry, I won't tell Cornell!", I say before racing off to the lounge, leaving Kay in a state of shock. I race back down the hallway, TB secured tightly in my arms. _This'll be the first Christmas with my new family … I hope they all like the presents that I got them!_ I reach the lounge and open the door to peer in; I can see Stephanie sat on a red sofa, next to her is Cornell. I step into the room and they both look up at me with smiles in their faces, "Morning Connie", Cornell greets as he taps the spot on the sofa next to him. I walk over to the sofa and seat myself next to Cornell, "we'll wait until the others are here before we start unwrapping the presents", Stephanie says from beside Cornell. I nod, my excitement nearly unbearable to contain.

 **Maria**

I walk down the hallway towards the lounge, last night I gave Kay the keychain as I promised, _I hope it goes well!_ I stop in my tracks as I spot Fred ahead of me. He's wrapping bandages around his wrist and hand, _is he hurt?_ I walk up to him and say hello, Fred looks up at me with tears in his eyes looking as if he is in dreadful pain, "Oh, hi Maria!". Fred seemed to harden his face slightly, as if to try and hide his pain, "Are you okay?", I ask. Fred scratches the back of his head, "Yeah just a little bruise is all!", I can tell straight away that he is making a show of his hand, _dramatic … I like that!_ I smile kindly at Fred, "Well I hope your bruise gets better soon, merry Christmas!", Fred smiles back at me, _he kind of looks like a little kid,_ "merry Christmas!". I walk away and to the lounge, my heartbeat accelerating from my interaction with Fred. _This how felt when I was crushing on Brian … but it feels more intense this time._

 **Stephanie**

Maria is sat down on an armchair near to the Christmas tree when the door opens and Fred steps in, his right hand and wrist in bandages. I smile when I remember all of the screaming and shouting from last night. Fred walks further into the room and seats himself down on a sofa next to ours. "Morning Fred", I greet him, Fred nods and strokes his bandaged hand, "What happened to your hand?", Connie asks, looking slightly frightened. Fred looks down at Connie and gives her a small smile, "I just hurt it last night is all", he explains, _Fred seems to be getting along quite nicely with Connie lately!_ Sam and Phil comes in, Sam looking like he's about to barf and Phil on the verge of laughter. Phil sits next to Fred and Sam sits down next to Phil. None of us ask about Sam in case Phil bursts out laughing. Will and Kay come in hand in hand, Kay looking a little embarrassed as she glances over at Connie who is grinning back at her. Will looks a little grumpy as he spots Fred who looks down at his feet in guilt and embarrassment. I snicker to myself as I watch Will death stare Fred as Kay leads him further into the room. Will sits down on the floor at Kay's feet as she seats herself next to Connie and places a hand on the top of Will's head whilst stroking his hair gently. I watch as Will's face turns from rage to calm and relaxed, _Kay really has that effect on him?_ Matt comes in last and sits on an armchair next to the sofa me and Cornell are sat on. We all start opening our presents, Kay receives; a hand cannon from Cornell, a romance novel _from muaw_ , a journal with a leather cover from Matt, a Fred-sized punching bag from Phil, a new shoulder bag from Maria and a framed drawing of Kay and Fred kissing from the idiot himself. Will looks outraged as Kay handles it gingerly, putting it down beside her. Cornell and I exchange gifts, Cornell receiving a wooden carving of a man and woman holding hands while walking, and I've got a silver necklace in the shape of a heart, on the front is a embedded shape of the letter "s". On the back of the heart, however, is the words, "My love, you shall always be in my heart. My only wish is to be in yours". My heart melts as I read the words on my necklace, I undo the clasp and, with Cornell's help, do the clasp back up so that the necklace hangs around my neck. I give Cornell a long kiss which I think Connie makes gagging sounds at. _I wonder if Connie likes her presents?_ I look over at Connie who is holding a wrapped box half the size of herself, I laugh to myself when I see her big excited eyes. She finally tears off the wrapping paper and opens up the cardboard box to peer in. A huge smile fills Connie's face and tears of happiness start to swell up in her eyes as she pulls out an argentavis saddle. She strokes the dark brown leather, inspects the reins and rubs her cheek against the dyed green fur that trails along the seams of the saddle before looking up at me and smiling, "thanks Cornell, thanks Stephanie!". Fred walks over and lifts the saddle over his shoulder, "Come on shrimp!", he says, "Let's go and see if it fits Lightning!". Fred and Connie walk off to the barn and I grin as I watch them go. _They really are getting along these days huh?_

 **Cornell**

All of us are outside in the snow, dressed in warm woolly outfits and laughing as we mess about out in the snow. Kay and Connie are making a snowman, rolling around giant balls of snow to make it the same size of the ten year old herself. Stephanie walks over to the two sisters with a top hat and scarf whilst Kay prods two sticks into the snowman for arms. I race over to help Connie arrange some pebbles for the snowman's mouth and eyes before Stephanie equips the hat and scarf. We all step back to admire our work, Kay shakes her head, "no, there's something missing!", she says. Sam walks up to the snowman and sticks a rock carrot where it's nose should be before stepping back to join us. Connie giggles and Stephanie laughs, "much better!", I chuckle. All of a sudden something cold hit the back of my head and I turn to find Phil laughing his head off whilst throwing snowballs in every direction. I smirk as I bend down to scoop up some snow to throw back at Phil who stops and looks over at me in shock before Fred and Will both leap out behind him whilst throwing balls of snow at Phil's head and back. Connie and Kay both laugh before racing to join in on the fun. Connie ambushes Phil by throwing a handful of cold snow up at his face. Me and Stephanie both laugh as we watch the ten year old chase down Phil. Kay and Will are both laughing their heads off, Will desperately trying to catch Kay whilst the teenager throws snowball after snowball at Will, most of them hitting him in the face, _that's me girl!_ "Oi, Kay! Get back here!", Will cries out as Kay once again avoids being caught. Will finally catches Kay and they both fall over into the snow.

Time has flown by, Christmas dinner has been eaten, presents opened, now we are all sat down in front of the warm fire. Kay and Will are sharing a sofa all to themselves, Will sat with his legs crossed and back against the arm of the sofa. Kay is sat in Will's lap, her head leant up against his chest, both of them are holding mugs of hot chocolate and are wearing sleepy smiles. _Do they have to be so close?_ Stephanie leans her head against my shoulder and I look down to find her sleeping soundly, a gentle smile on her face. I sigh and stroke her short black hair, _I know I should tell her … but it is too much stress, especially on Christmas … I'll tell her in the new year!_ I look back up just in time to see Sam lead Connie out of the room by her hand, Connie rubbing at her eyes sleepily with her spare hand. _She must be worn out by now, the hot chocolate must have took out any energy she had left._

 **Will**

Me and Kay walk back to our rooms, Kay seems to be more tired than me since her eyes are half closed and her walk is slower than usual. I follow Kay until we reach her room, "Well I'll see you in the morning, Will!", Kay says as she stops outside her door, "I hope today was as fun for you as it was for me!", I smile as our eyes meet, "well it has been very fun but who said the day is over?". I take a step forwards so that we are barely ten centimetres away from each other, Kay looks up at me and smirks as something catches her eye. I look up and laugh as I spot the mistletoe hanging above me, "A mere coincidence?", I joke as I look back down at Kay who giggles, "Stephanie must have hung it there yesterday when she was decorating", she says. Caught in the moment I lean in slowly, Kay seems to feel the same urge since she too leans in. We both close our eyes and our lips meet, the warmth and sweetness from Kay's lips is the best Christmas present I could ever ask for … I slip my hands around Kay's waist and pull her closer. Kay giggles into our kiss before pulling away and smiling at me, "I love you", she says before resting her head on my chest and wrapping her arms around my back. I smile as I gently hug my girlfriend back, "I love you too, babe!", I breathe into Kay's hair. I let go of Kay and pull out the box from my pocket, to give to her. Kay takes the box and hesitantly opens it, I almost laugh as she gasps when she sees the silver bracelet, "Oh, Will, it's beautiful, thank you!", Kay slips the bracelet on and throws her arms around me in an excited embrace. I chuckle to myself as I hug her back. Kay pulls back with a happy smile and holds up a small box of her own, "for you!", she says as I take it. On opening up the box I find a keychain with a key attached to the metal hoop. I trace my finger over the silver key and read the words aloud, "The key to my heart", I laugh and look back down at Kay. "I love you so much!", I say before pulling Kay into another passionate kiss. _I hope that the new year to come will be as good as this!_


	19. Chapter 16

**A quick note for the reader(s).**

 **I would like to apologize due to the fact it has took me longer than usual to post stories. I have been a little busy lately so it didn't give me much writing time. But I hope those who read my stories enjoy this one. Thank you for taking the time to read and review my fanfictions.**

 **Connie**

It's early in the morning and I'm racing down the tower's hallways and towards my room. It's still snowy outside so I am freezing cold after flying with Lightning. I'm trying to be quiet since I don't want anyone knowing I was out on my own. Though I can't help the pitter-patter of shoe against stone. I reach my room, open the door, step inside and close the door quietly behind me. I quickly take of my coat, which has bits of snow on it, and hang it inside the wardrobe. I then take my boots off and jump onto my bed. The mirror above the dresser next to the wardrobe shows a girl with dark, emerald green eyes and short, messy brown hair. _I should probably tidy myself up._ I get up and walk over to the dresser and grab the hairbrush which was lay on top. Soon my hair is once again neat … _maybe too neat_. I walk back over to my bed and pull the suitcase from underneath it, most of my belongings are already in it. I told my pyjamas and lay them inside, I then put my hairbrush inside and pull out one of the wooden dolls Phil had made me. Stephanie had made some wigs for them and said that she'd super glue them to the doll's head if I wanted. There are four wigs in total; a short red one, a long blonde one, a short brown one and a long black one. I've already decided to super glue the brown one to one of my smaller dolls. And I'm thinking about putting the red one on my male doll I have. _But for some reason I can't decide on which dolls the blonde and black wigs should go on._ The blonde wig reminds me of mum, her kind smile and soft, warm eyes. But the black wig reminds me of Stephanie, her strong expression, her kind and funny personality. I can't let the memory of my birth mother and father go … I can't forget who I am, or who I can from. But at the same end of it, I have to make the most of the family I have now. I put the black wig on the doll and smile, _I bet Stephanie would look better with longer hair!_

 **Sam**

Ray's of weak sunlight, peeping through the curtains, wakes me up. I look around and sigh to myself, _I am still getting used to this new lifestyle._ At the Black Skull tribe, my room was very small, only big enough for my bed. But here, my bed is extravagant and surrounding walls are all warm, which makes me feel safe and protected. _I remember a time when me and Kay used to feel like this … back at the Sabretooth tribe …_ No! She's not the little damsel anymore, all I can do is watch out for her and be there for her if she ever needs me. _Though it can't hurt if I run a few tests on Will … just to see if he is worthy._ I sit up in my bed just in time to hear the door knock, "give me a minute!", I call out before getting out of bed and smoothing down my top. I walk over to the door whilst rubbing the sleep out of my eyes as I go. I open the door but before I can see who it is my arm is grabbed and twisted behind my back as someone sneakily slips past me before I can see their face. A hand flies to my mouth, preventing me from shouting out for help. Panic and anger flows through me as I struggle in my attacker's grip. "You really shouldn't have crossed us!", a deep, dark growl comes to my right ear as the grip on my wrist tightens, _the Black Skull tribe?! How did they get in here?_ I am thrown to the floor and my attacker gives a hard kick to my stomach before racing out of the door. I get up, hunched over and groaning due to the pain in my stomach and peer out into the hallway, but no one is there, _I need to tell Cornell!_

 **Cornell**

Me and Matt are sat in his office, discussing different ways of protecting Terror Bird tribe against any possible Black Skull attacks. A blueprint is lay out on Matt's desk, it shows a guard tower. "If we scatter these around your house then I can send some of my men to help defend your tribe", Matt explains as he takes out another rolled up blueprint and lays it on top of the last one. This blueprint shows two different turrets, a cannonball shooter and one that shoots ballista arrows. "If we dot these around the place too, it'll be that little bit safer", Matt says before handing me a map that has some tunnel markings on it. "We're still working on it, but it'll be a good escape plan for your family if you ever get in a tough spot", Matt smiles at me and I nod before putting the map and blueprints into my bag, "Thanks dad". Me and Matt walk out of the office and down the tower's hallways as Sam comes racing down to meet us. He stops and bends over panting for breath, "Sam?", I ask, bewildered by the state he is in ; still available n pyjamas, barefoot, his hair messy … all proof that Sam has just woke up. I'm about to tell him to go and tidy himself up when I notice red marks on his right arm in the shape of a hand. Not only that but he seemed to be using his left hand to clutch at his stomach as she f he was in pain. I step forward and grab his right arm to take a closer look at the red marks, "What the hell happened?!", I demand, panic and worry starting to take me over. Sam looks straight into my eyes, anger and panic filling his, "the Black Skulls are in the tower!".

 **Will**

I wake up feeling something soft in my arms and something warm pressed against my chest. I look down and smile as Kay snuggles against me. _I wish I can stay here like this, by it's too risky with Cornell just down the hallway._ I sigh sadly and beging trying to slip away from Kay. But as I do, Kay's eyes snap open and she looks up at me with those big bright blues. I smile gently as she hugs me tightly, "Sorry for waking you up, babe", I apologize, stroking Kay's hair. Kay smiles up at me, "It's okay, I had to wake up anyway". Kay sits up and is about to get out of bed when I reach over and wrap my arms around her waist, preventing my girlfriend from escaping. I press my lips against Kay's neck and she gasps in surprise, "Will?", she exclaims before bursting out in giggles and laughter as my lips move up and down her neck, kissing her faster and faster. This continues for a good few moments before I eventually let Kay go. Kay turns on the bed and leans over so that she could kiss my forehead, "I'll give you one on the lips later, I've got to go get washed up", she says. I smile and nod at Kay, "Okay, I've got to go get changed so I'll be expecting that kiss!", I say jokingly before making my way out of Kay's room. On the way to my room I spot Phil stood next to my bedroom door with a big grin on his face, _does he know? Is he going to try and blackmail me?_ Phil spots me and beckons for me to come closer. _Well there's no way out of this now …_ I walk up to Phil and smile nervously, "Hey Phil, what's up?", I greet him. Phil laughs on seeing my nervousness, "Don't worry Will", he says, "I won't tell Cornell, but you better hurry up and get changed since Cornell wants to meet with us in Matt's office!". "Okay, what about?", I ask, curiosity and confusion now spread out across my face. Phil shrugs his shoulders to indicate that he knew nothing. I race into my room to get changed.

 **Phil**

Me and Will are in Matt's office. Matt is sat in his arm chair behind his desk, Sam is sat on the very edge of Matt's desk and Cornell is stood on the left, beside his father's chair. All three of them looks angry, _I wonder what's happened?_ Matt takes a sleep breath before addressing me and Will, "The Black Skull tribe has declared war against both the Terror Birds and the Carno tribe". We both stand there in complete shock, "What is worse", Matt continues, "Is that the Black Skull tribe has managed to get inside the tower somehow!". Sam raises his arm to show some sore red marks in the shape of a hand, "One of them targeted me this morning, no doubt they'll try and get close to Kay and Connie too". Panic strikes Will's face as he spins on the spot and races through the door to go find Kay. _Someone will need to go find Connie too!_ Matt nods at me and talks through what has already been discussed with Sam and Cornell.

 **Black Skull Spy**

 **Gregory Duffold**

 _This was a brilliant idea! The Boss really out did it this time!_ Pretending to be one of the Carno tribe members and following Connie around secretly is really paying off. And threatening that traitor really helped to get some steam off my chest! I need to get into the Terror Bird tribe and then, when they're backs are turned, I can take Connie back to the Boss and be rewarded handsomely. But there is another thing I can do which'll be sure to make that traitor fall into despair! Looking up at the tower and take out a pair of binoculars and point them up at one of the windows. The curtains are closed and a light had been turned on inside, allowing me to watch as a dark, clearly female figure moved around in the room. _This is going to be fun!_

 **Kay**

I finish drying my hair with a towel and fold the towel to put into the dirty laundry basket in the corner of my room. As I reach under my bed to pull out the suitcase, I can't help the feeling that I am being watched. _It probably just superstition!_ I walk out of my room and down the hallway to Connie's room. I knock on the door and wait for a reply but instead a lot crashing comes to my ears. "Connie? Are you alright?", I ask, pressing my ear against the door, "I'm fine, I'll be right there!", Connie calls out before more crashing noises echoes out to me. Stricken with panic and worry for my little sister, I open the door to see what was happening. Connie was on the floor, struggling to undo a big pink bow on her back just above her hip. I fall out with laughter as Connie's cheeks go bright red with embarrassment. Connie looks up at me angrily, "Tell Stephanie and I'll kill you!", she says as I help her out if the puffy pink dress, "Understood, Cutie Patootie!", I snicker. Connie dresses herself in her usual brown, puffy shorts, black boots that end just below her knees and her dark green, sleeveless top. I go into Connie's wardrobe and pull out her long black coat, which is slightly damp, much to my surprise. I help Connie put it on and then fold the dress and put it back into Connie's suitcase. I grab my suitcase which I had left by the door and wait as Connie grabs hers and follows, "Are we going home now?", Connie asks, "Yeah", I say as we walk down the tower's hallways. Much to my surprise Connie reaches up and grabs my hand. I look down at her and see that she has a happy smile on her face as she looks ahead of us. I smile and give Connie's hand a little squeeze. As we reach the doors leading to outside the tower, I hear footsteps come racing up behind me and turn just in time to see Will lunge at me, suitcase in one hand whilst his other reaches out and wraps round my waist, pulling me close to him as our lips meet. Connie immediately let's go of my hands and stumbles back, "Ew! Gross!", she cries. Will doesn't pull away however, instead he makes the kiss even more intimate. Will let's go of his suitcase and runs his hand through my hair as his tongue begins to explore my mouth. I let go of my suitcase and wrap both my arms around his neck as our tongues intertwine. I hear someone coming but I don't dare open my eyes since I'm so engrossed in this one moment, this one kiss. And it's not because of how deeply Will is breathing into me or how relentless he is to let me go … it's because I can sense something, the way he is more clingy than usual, the way his emotions are flowing through him and into me … fear, protectiveness and anger. But also desire, I soak it all in, ridding him of the negative feelings. "Stephanie!", I hear Connie whine, "Will and Kay are being gross!". Stephanie laughs and I hear someone walk up to us. But instead of a gentle whisper to tell us to stop, Will is yanked away from me. I open my eyes to find Will being held up in the air by Cornell who holds an angry expression on his face. Just behind Cornell I can see Sam who is struggling to hold back laughter. I smirk and take a step forwards before standing on my tiptoes and meeting my lips with Will's. Stephanie burst out with laughter as Cornell's face turns red and Sam looks as if he is about to punch something. Connie moans and whines about me and Will being gross and spreading germs. Cornell drops Will to the floor and he instantly grabs hold of me, reeling me back into that passionate kiss of his. Fred and Phil walks down the stairs to meet us, Maria behind them. Hugging Fred's head, and occasionally punching him in the ear, is Jeffrey. I hadn't seen him in awhile, looks like Will got him to bully Fred for a little while. They reach the bottom of the stairs and Fred spots us, "Hey, thanks for waiting for -", Fred's voice trails off as he watches me and Will kiss. _I think Will is trying to show off now ..._

 **Stephanie**

Once Will and Kay had finished their moment, we all said goodbye to Matt and began walking to the exit of Carno tribe. Matt had gotten three members of Carno tribe to come to our tribe with us. _Though I don't think we need the security, Matt must have thought we did._ Maria follows at the back, her eyes keep flying to the back of Fred's head who is walking behind Theasus. I smile to myself as I picture them as a couple. Fred looks miserable as he walks with his head down and face in a pout. I look up at Cornell and notice the distant look on his face … I know that something is wrong but I also know that Cornell will tell me when he thinks it is the right time so I merely smile and intertwine my fingers with his. Cornell squeezes my hand gently before smiling down at me with kindness in his eyes. It's coming close to lunchtime and Connie is starting to slow down, Lightning was flown ahead by one of the men Matt sent with us so Connie has to walk. However her eyes are drooping and she looks quite tired. I'm about to turn around and pick her up when Sam, who is walking behind me, stops and kneels down for Connie to climb onto his back. Connie wraps her arms around Sam's neck and,without any word said between them, Sam stands up with Connie on his back and continues to walk. Connie soon falls asleep with her head resting on Sam's shoulder. It's quite amusing to watch … Connie, who had trouble trusting anyone when she first came to Terror Birds, felt so safe around Sam and Kay that she'd fall asleep. _I hope that this doesn't change too soon._

We arrive home and I quickly go inside the house with Will to get the air conditioning on and some food cooking. The house is quite cold and I find myself shivering in the kitchen. But the heat from the industrial grill soon warms up the room as I cook up some dodo meat for some sandwiches. I hear some noise from outside in the hallway and turn to see if it is Cornell. But instead I see a man, he's tall but not as tall as Phil and his eyes are a reddish brown. His hair is black and skin slightly grey, making him look sick. But the one thing that makes this man stand out is a scar that runs down his left cheek. I smile at him as I realise that he was the one who went on ahead to make sure that it was safe to come home. "Hello, I'm Stephanie Marshall, who are you?", I ask, hoping that the man didn't notice how shocked I was. "Gregory Duffold", the man says, and for a split second I can see a flicker of an evil smirk which is turned into a straight line. _Maybe I'm just tired?_ "I've got to go and walk around the house, make sure there is no holes in the walls or signs of people breaking in", Gregory says before walking off. I turn back round and almost scream as I realise that the dodo meat is burning.

 **Fred**

 _I don't trust these people who are walking around the house! They're being way too nosy, looking around our rooms and checking about or security._ It's probably just me and my superstition but I can't help but feel as if they're noting everything about us and our security, but what would they do with that information? Whatever they're doing, there is no way they are coming in my room! I reach my room and place my suitcase down next to my bed, _I'll put my things away later …_ the door knocks and I go to answer it. Opening the door I see Maria, looking embarrassed and shy, "I'm sorry but Cornell said you'd show me to my room", she says quietly. I look around for Jerboa, but realise that it isn't in sight. I give a lazy smile to Maria, "Didn't you have a pet Jerboa?", Maria smiles, her shyness slowly melting away, "Oh, you mean Ribbon?". _Ribbon? Is that the rat's name?_ I nod and Maria's smile grows, "He and Jeffrey are playing together", she explains. _So that's why the monkey stopped picking on me._ I sigh and walk out of my room, closing the door behind me and leading Maria to her room, "Your room is still being built since no one was here to make it up for you", _thanks to Will,_ "so you're gonna have to sleep in the lab for awhile". Maria doesn't seem bothered as she follows me into the basement. The basement is separated into two rooms, the cellar and the lab. I lead Maria through the cellar and into the lab, "it can get cold in here first thing in the morning but, if you hear to the kitchen, Stephanie usually gets up early to cook breakfast so you should warm right up", to advise Maria. Maria nods, "Thank you Mr-", I quickly cut Maria off, "My name's Fred". Maria thinks it over in her head, "Thank you … Fred". I smile at her to say it's okay before hurriedly racing out of the basement and back to my room, _why does her smile seem so … infectious?_

 **Maria**

After Fred has left I breathe a deep sigh, _Fred seems to have this effect on me lately._ I guess I can't help it though, I mean who wouldn't? He acts so cool but he's actually really nice. And he's so handsome with those brown eyes if his. I walk over to a camping bed that had been set up and put my suitcase down on the end of it, _I'll put my things away when my bedroom has been properly set up._ I look around, it not as big as the lab back at Carno tribe but it's big enough to move around easily in. A chemistry table off to one side, a workbench to the other and a fabricator in the middle of the room. A table and a chair are positioned next to my bed which has some pens, pencils and paper on it. I take out my journal from my suitcase and sit down at the table, using a pen to write in my journal;

 _Entry 48_

 _26th of December_

 _I'm at the Terror Bird tribe now, everyone here is so nice. Though there is one boy here who I really like. His name is Fred and he is handsome, not as well built as Brian but I have a feeling that he is much kinder than Brian ever was. There is also Kay, Cornell's eldest daughter who seems really nice, and her raptor, Theasus, is a real sweetie! I hope to be of great help to this tribe, maybe even a greater help to Fred. My only worry is that Ribbon will get up to trouble with Kay's boyfriend's pet monkey, Jeffrey._

I close my journal and put it to one side in the table before walking off to find Ribbon.

 **Jeffrey**

Ribbon and Jeffrey sneak through the hallways of the house. Jeffery was originally showing Ribbon around the place but he soon sensed that there was something wrong and now both monkey and jerboa are investigating. Jeffrey resists the urge to race at Fred as he passes to go to his room and carries on leading Ribbon around the house. Jeffrey eventually reaches Connie's room and stops, the sensation of danger seems to be strongest around here. Jeffrey walks up to the door and peers in when he realises that it's open. Ribbon stands behind Jeffrey, keeping watch to warn the monkey if anyone approaches. Jeffrey watches carefully as a tall man with black hair walks around Connie's room inspecting each and every corner of the place. The man goes through Connie's dresser, pulling out random bits of clothes before moving onto the chest next to the wardrobe and pulling out bits and bobs from that. Soon the floor is littered with drawings, wooden dolls, toy carved animals, teddies and dolls clothes. Jeffrey, who had been watching, turns to Ribbon and begins chattering quietly. The monkey and the jerboa both agree to not let the man get away with destroying Connie's room and burst into the room, Jeffrey jumps onto the man's head and Ribbon races out the room while Jeffrey temporarily blinds the man. Ribbon races back in with a rope which he uses to tie up the man's legs. The man collapses to the floor and Jeffrey ties up his arms behind his back. The door flies open and Cornell comes in. Anger fills his face when he sees the state of Connie's room, "What's going on here … Gregory?". The man looks up at Cornell, his face etched with surprise.

 **Black Skull Spy**

 **Gregory Duffold**

Luckily Cornell believed me when I said that it was like that when I got there. I'll have to be a little more careful in future, those rats are real trouble makers. I didn't learn much about Connie by going through her stuff either. So far what I've learnt is that she likes to fly her bird when it's dark out … maybe that'll be a good time to snatch her up. _But I'll still have to get the good to go from the Boss_. Maybe if I get some more Black Skull spies over here, we can set a trap that'll quickly have Connie back home. I walk down the hallway and out the door. I sneak around the back of the house and squat down. A small hole between the wall and sandy ground, hidden by some palm tree leaves can be seen. I move the leaves out the way and put a scrolled up piece of paper into the hole before covering it up again. Hopefully the Boss will approve and we can get this over and done with … _it getting way too risky as is._ Stephanie and Fred are already sensing that something is wrong … but if anyone notices that the rats find me suspicious, the whole mission is off.


	20. Chapter 17

**Connie**

We're all in the kitchen, it's late at night and I'm quite sleepy. Stephanie had cooked a roast dodo and we all have had really big helpings. With a full tummy, I give a little yawn and draw my attention to the conversation between the adults. Cornell is complaining about something whilst looking very moody. I look over to Kay and Will, Will is holding Kay's arm whilst examining a tattoo that says "spes vero semper a miles sequitur" with an awed expression. I notice Fred staring at the tattoo in admiration. Maria is also looking quite intrigued as she watches Will inspect Kay's arm. I stare at the tattoo for a moment before Stephanie says, "So what does it mean?". Kay looks over at Stephanie with a smile, "hope always follows a true warrior", she explains. _A true warrior?_ Cornell shakes his head angrily, "I still think you're a little too young to have a tattoo!", Kay smiles, "Back at Sabretooth tribe, it was a tradition that all young children would have a tattoo as a way to give them hope, or a meaning incase they lost theirs". Cornell seems to be silenced as Sam raises his arm to show that he had a tattoo as well, though his is in the shape of a shield with swirl like patterns to make the tattoo up. _They look so cool … I'd like one … maybe in the shape of a clover?_ I smile to myself as I sit up straight in my seat, "Cornell? Can I have a tattoo too?". Cornell looks at me with a horrified expression, Kay smirks and Phil buries his face in his hands, as if hiding the fact that he was on the verge of laughter. Stephanie speaks up for Cornell, a trembling smile on her face, as if she was trying to be stern but couldn't quite get the expression right, "Maybe when you're older, sweetie". Cornell looks away as he mumbles something under his breath which I can just make out to be "Or never at all". Sam, who has been struggling not to laugh up until now, gets up and does a little stretch before making a hand gesture for me to follow him, "It's getting late, let's get you to bed". I get up off of my seat and am about to follow Sam when I remember what Stephanie said on Christmas eve. I turn and hug Stephanie from behind. Stephanie jumps in surprise as I hug her. "See you in the morning … mum", I say happily. As soon as I said this I left Stephanie in shock and ran past Sam to my room. Sam soon catches up with me and picks me up off of my feet, carrying me to my room. I giggle as Sam looks down at me with a smile.

 **Cornell**

I smile as Stephanie sits beside me, tears of happiness swelling up in her eyes. Stephanie looks over at me with a trembling smile, "she called me mum". I reach over and pull Stephanie into a hug, "There, there, don't go all mushy on me!", I joke. For a while we all talk and laugh amongst each other before Kay and Will go to bed. Phil, Fred and Maria also go to bed which is when me and Stephanie decide to head off as well. Stephanie goes on ahead of me and I go to check on Connie before going to our bedroom. As I reach Connie's room I see Sam coming out looking sleepy with a smile on his face, "Connie asleep?", I ask. Sam smiles at me and nods, "Yeah, out cold as soon as her head hit the pillow", he jokes. I smile and say goodnight to him before heading to my room. I open the door and step inside, Stephanie is sat on the bed with a mischievous smirk spread across her face. I take a moment to examine her and realise exactly what she is doing. She is wearing a short nightdress, her legs bare and hanging off the bed whilst her hair is pushed back and the one strap of her nightdress is hanging off her shoulder, _is she trying to seduce me?_ I smirk and walk over to bed, Stephanie holds her ground smiling at me with the same smile I use on her. _She's trying to beat me at my own game … that's cute!_ I slip my hand up Stephanie's dress and her face starts to become flushed. I slip my other hand around the back of Stephanie's head and pull her into a deep kiss. Stephanie quickly melts into me, allowing herself to be undressed and pushed down onto the bed.

 **Connie**

I wake up early in the morning, no matter how late I go to bed, I'll always wake up early. I get up and quickly wash myself up, taking a shower, brushing my teeth and then my I get dressed into my usual sleeveless green top and puffy brown shorts. I put on my ankle high boots as well as my coat before racing out of my room and outside the house. I am light on my feet that way no one will wake up. I get to the barn and look inside. Theasus is fast asleep and so is Lightning. _Maybe I should come back later?_ I'm about to leave when Lightning wakes up and let's out a little chirp, I smile at him, "Morning, Lightning. Ready to fly?". The bird let's out a bunch of chirps and whistles which I take as an excited yes. I'm about to walk over the Lightning's pen when two men step in front of me. I realise that they are both men that Matt sent to escort us home. I smile at them, hoping that they won't tell Cornell about me being up early, "It's my turn to clean out the pens", I lie, _it's still Will's job to do that!_ The men continue to stare down at me, "You might want to leave since the smell is very bad!", I say, getting slightly annoyed. _Why won't they leave?_ One of the men laughs and looks over to someone behind me. I turn and freeze, unable to move or to say anything. Stood right there is one of the men who'd torture me every time I'd try and run away or do something that was considered disrespectful. _Gregory_! Lightning senses my distress and starts to move around agitatedly in his pen. Gregory takes a step forwards, his reddish eyes sparkling with menace. "Gregory? What are you doing here?", I ask, taking a step back only to have my arms grasped by one of the men. Lightning let's out an angry screech and moves around more frantically in his pen which wakes Theasus up. Gregory laughs, "We're here to take you back, don't you know that much, brat?". _Take me back? I don't want to go back!_ Theasus starts ramming himself up against the pen gate, trying to free himself to come to my aid. I stamp hard on my attacker's foot. The man instantly loosens his grip which I break out of. I race past Gregory who reaches out to catch me. But I am too fast and Gregory fails to do so. I run towards the house as fast as I can. _I have to tell Cornell!_

 **Kay**

It's early in the morning when I wake up. I'm just barely awake and still very sleepily. But for some odd reason I can't get back to sleep. I sigh and sit up in bed, _everyone is probably still sleeping …_ I get up and take my clothes off, allowing my nightdress to fall to the floor before walking into the bathroom and getting in the shower. I take a long thirty minutes washing myself ready for the long day ahead. I turn off the shower and walk out of the bathroom. Dressed in a towel I begin to dry myself off before getting dressed in my white vest top, purple short sleeved top, black skinny jeans and usual boots. _It's been a little while since we came back_ , I think to myself as I sit in front of the mirror whilst brushing my hair, _it's strange being home after staying in the Carno tribe. And not just because I'm used to the Carno tribe, it feels different from before … like something has changed._ I shrug away the feeling and walk over to the door, _might as well wait down in the kitchen for Stephanie._ But when I open the door I find myself being pushed back into my room and held in strong but gentle arms, "Will?", I exclaim. Will's breath tickles my ear, "Yes, Kayleena?", he replies. I can't help but smile as my boyfriend says my full first name. It's different from how my mother and brother said it. Will's voice is filled with passion and lust as he says my name, as if he's saying that he wants to eat, _hehe, that just makes me sound like a meal!_ As if Will can hear my thoughts, he leans down and begins to kiss my neck which makes me groan with pleasure. He then seizes his chance and enters my mouth, intertwining his tongue with mine. I breathe into the kiss as his hands wander down my waist and rests on my hips. My fingers roam through Will's hair as the kiss deepens and becomes more and more passionate. Will pulls away and closes the door before picking me up into his arms and laying me on my bed. Will leans over me, our bodies aligned. It's only now that I realise that Will is still in his pyjamas, _did he not long ago wake up?_ "Why is it your so irresistible?", Will asks, taking in all of my features. I smirk as I trace my finger over Will's lips, "I think you already know the answer". Will copies my smirk and slips his hand between my thighs. My breath catches in surprise as Will kisses my neck. I wrap my arms around Will's neck as he kisses me over and over again, on the neck, the lips and occasionally the chest just above my breasts. _This is dangerous!_ I tell myself as Will becomes more and more rough, his kisses lustfully planted on me as if he can't get enough. _We're playing with fire, this is going to end up as something we'll regret!_ As I am thinking this I hear a door slam and a lot of running feet. Will stops for a moment and sits up. I sit up too, relieved but disappointed at the same time. Will sighs to himself, "I'd best go back to my room and change before Cornell catches me", he says sulkily before giving me one last passionate kiss and walking out of the door. I sit on my bed for a moment, still slightly out of breath from the heated moment with Will. I eventually calm down and get up off my bed. I get my leather jacket and slip it on before going to leave the room, _might as well go down to the kitchen and help make breakfast._ I walk out of my room and down the hallway and stairs. _I wonder if Will would have actually … no he has more self control than that!_ I stop just before the kitchen and stare in confusion at Connie who is on her hands and knees on the floor looking terrified at three men who are surrounding her. _Is there something wrong?_ I am about the take a step forwards when the one man with a scar running down his one cheek bends down to say something to Connie. "It's time to go home now, brat!", I hear him say. Connie shakes her head, her entire face stricken with fear, "No, Gregory! I don't want to!". My fists clench as I realise that they're from the Black Skull tribe. Gregory's face tightens with anger and he raises his hand to back hand Connie. I quickly arm myself with my hand cannon which Cornell gave me on Christmas and rush in to defend Connie. _I guess it's lucky I had it attached to my belt this entire time._ All three men look up and freeze when they spot the hand cannon. Connie gets up and races over to me. As soon as Connie is safely hidden behind me I start to back away, "Connie, go get Cornell, I bet he'd like to have a little chat with our new guests", I say to Connie who turns to race away. But Connie is thrown back into the room and I turn to see a fourth man, burly and fierce looking. I am about to aim and shoot the gun when the burly man grabs both my hands in just his one and squeezes hard. I drop the hand cannon and the burly man drops me to the floor before another man sneaks up behind me and presses a piece of cloth over my mouth and nose. I unintentionally breathe in and find myself falling asleep. _Oh god no!_

 **Will**

I walk down the hallway and down the stairs. Kay should already be down here since I didn't get an answer when I knocked on her door. I'm kind of disappointed since I wanted some more time with her. But I guess it would have been too risky since Cornell and Stephanie are awake now. I sigh as I reach the kitchen. I turn and walk in only to find myself surprised that there is no one inside. I look about to make sure that they weren't hiding in a corner or something. _Where is everyone? Maybe outside?_ I turn to walk outside but I see Cornell, Stephanie and Sam out the corner of my eye who are walking down the stairs. Phil and Fred are definitely still in bed since I could hear them snoring. And Maria was working on something late last night so she'll still be in bed. _So where is Kay?_ I look back at the kitchen and freeze when I see something on the floor, _Kay's hand cannon!_ Cornell approaches me, "Morning, what's wrong?". I point to the hand cannon on the floor and Cornell looks in the direction of my finger. He walks over and picks the hand cannon up, his face set with panic. "I saw Kay this morning, I had to get cleaned up and I think she came down to help out with breakfast", I explain. Cornell looks up at me and realisation hits him. _They got into Carno tribe … and now they've got into Terror Birds too!_ I race out of the house and towards the barn. Lightning is moving around frantically inside his pen whilst Theasus is slamming against the gate of his pen. I ignore them and head straight for the table with my tools on it. Amongst the screwdrivers, hammers, nails and saw, there is a chain bola which I haven't finished just yet. It's a just a metal chain with a spiky ball on the end. Even though it's finished, it's still deadly and will do to lay havoc on the Black Skull tribe. I hear running footsteps behind me and I turn to see Phil. "Cornell just told me, I went to Connie's room and she isn't there!", he explains, the dread inside me increases as Phil says my fears out loud, "They don't have her too, do they?". I grit my teeth, "If they do we'll crush them all!". _Don't worry Kay, I'm going to save you!_

 **Kay**

I open my eyes and look around, my hands are bound and tied to a wooden beam in the ceiling above me. I am sat on a wooden chair and my mouth is gagged. My jacket and purple top has been removed so that my white vest top is visible. I look around, there is a table just to the side of me where a lot of weird devices are lay upon. My eyes widen as I recognise a few to be torture devices. I look at my feet and find that I can move them. However right next to my feet are patches of blood that has stained into the stone floor. I look away hastily before I start gagging. _Where am I? How many people have died in here?_ As I am thinking this I hear a door open and close. I look up as a man walks down some stairs and into the room. _That's the man Connie called Gregory!_ I tense up as he comes near me. He undoes my gag so that I can speak. Gregory smiles at me with his evil smirk, "Awake now are we?", he asks. I refuse to answer him and merely give him one of my hardest stares. "My, my", Gregory exclaims as he takes in my stare, "You really are a tough one, aren't you?". "Where is Connie?", I growl at Gregory. Gregory laughs, "That brat is with the Boss", _the Boss?_ Gregory seems to be looking me up and down with hungry eyes. _I need to get out of here!_ Gregory reaches over to touch my chest but I kick him away. "Resist me and this is going to be very painful!", Gregory says with a smug smirk. Gregory takes of his jacket and throws it aside before goes to the table and picks up a whip. I shiver at the sight of his weapon, "It's time to have a little fun", Gregory says before he gives out a sharp whistle. Another man comes into the room, his face hidden by long brown hair. The man walks over to a wall where a rope is tied to a hook on the wall. He unties the rope and pulls slowly on it. My hands are pulled up, forcing me to stand. Gregory kicks the chair away as the man redoes the rope, tying it to the hook. The man leaves the room as Gregory circles me, trying to find the weakest point of my body. He stops behind me and I brace myself for the sharp pain to come. There is cracking sound as pain shoots through my back, "Ah!", I can't help the yell of surprise that escapes my lips. Gregory laughs and I feel something stroke my back. I grit my teeth as Gregory slips his hand under my best to try and undo my bra. I kick back and he reels away from me. Once again, the crack sounds, by this time it happens multiple times before he stops. Each time the whip is brought down on my back I let out a gasp or a yell until eventually Gregory stops. I can feel something trickling down my back and realise that the whip must have scarred me. My breath is heavy and laboured as Gregory comes to stand in front of me. My chin is pulled up and I find my face right in front of Gregory's. Gregory is smiling evilly as if he is a predator playing around with his food. "What's the matter? We've only just started after all!", Gregory laughs. I pull my head away and try to kick him, but Gregory catches my leg. My leg is pulled up to rest on Gregory's hip. I lunge out with my left foot but that leg is caught and pinned down too. I thrash about as Gregory tries to undo the zip on my trousers. I close my eyes tight, trying to picture myself back at home in Will's arms. The sound of a door opening comes to my ears. "Gregory, the Boss wants to see you!", a man yells. I open my eyes to find Gregory frowning, his hand hovering over my zip, "I'll be back to finish this!", he tells me in a dark voice. I breathe a sigh of relief as Gregory leaves the room. _I'm safe … for now._

 **Connie**

I wake up with a sore head. My hand are bound behind my back and my buddy is leant up against a wooden desk. The floor is cold stone beneath me. I look about when I remember what happened to me and am relieved to find myself alone … _but where is Kay?_ I stand up, leaning against the wooden desk for support. I walk around the room I am in, inspecting for any exits. The window behind the desk is large enough for me to climb out of. But as I go closer to it, I find that the drop below would most likely break my neck. I sigh and walk away. The door is most likely locked or guarded … _or both!_ If my hands were free, I could try to climb down the side. Just as I am looking for another escape, I spot a map laid out on the desk with a knife stuck in it. I quickly go to the desk and climb on top of it, sitting with my back to the blade and hurriedly cutting away at my bindings. The bindings make a snapping noise and I jump up off of the table, my hands freed. But before I can make my escape the door opens. I quickly grab the knife and pull it out before brandishing it out before me. However the person who enters the room makes me freeze … _Marcus?_ I try to step back as he walks in and closes the door behind him, but I am backed against Marcus's desk with nowhere else to go. Marcus looks at me with rage in his eyes. He walks up to me and grabs both of my hands in his one, lifting me up into the air and squeezing hard until I let go of the knife. "Ow!", I exclaim as Marcus drops me to the floor and picks up the knife. But instead of beating me like he would back when I was still very young … he walks around the desk and sits down in his chair. I sit silently on the floor as Marcus sits stroking his chin as if thinking about what he should do. _Maybe I should take this chance to sneak out of the door?_ No, Marcus is fast, he would beat me to it. That and there's probably a lot of guards out there. _I wish I know where Kay is!_ A sudden band alerts me and I turn my head. Marcus has slammed his fist on the desk and is glaring at me angrily. I try to shuffle away but my body is frozen to the spot. "Come here", Marcus growls, his sharp lime green eyes piercing me. I slowly get up and walk over to him. Marcus grabs a handful of my hair and yanks hard to bring me closer. I muffle a cry. "Who brought you in at a young age?", Marcus asks, his voice harsh and demanding. "You did", I reply quietly, "Who fed you and put a roof over your head?", Marcus questions again. "You did", I repeat, tears running down my face as I close my eyes tightly. "Who gave you a purpose, a reason to be alive at all?", Marcus demands, his grasp on my hair getting tighter, "You did", I say, my voice hoarse from trying to hold back from crying. Marcus's breath is now on my cheek. Panic inside me is now rising to a new level … _is he going to hurt me again?_ "So who do you belong to?", this time Marcus's voice is softer but still aggressive. I open my eyes slowly to meet his. Marcus holds an angry grin on his face as he waits for my answer. "You", I say, the word slowly gnawing away at me. Marcus let's me go and turns away. _I need to get out of here!_ The door is opened once again and Gregory steps in with smirk on his face. "Did you want something Boss?", Gregory asks as he spots me. "Where's my whip", Marcus asks, the anger now being directed at Gregory not through voice but through eye contact. Gregory instantly shied away, "I'm using it on the prisoner in the torture room Boss", he explained. _The prisoner? Is he referring to Kay?_ Marcus let's out an exasperated sigh, "Fine, just don't get it too bloody!". Gregory looks relieved, "Don't worry Boss, I won't and I'll clean it after too!". Marcus nodded and made a hand gesture for him to leave. Gregory left hastily and closed the door behind him. Marcus is quiet for some time before standing up and grabbing my arms. I let out a surprised gasp as Marcus lifts me up and sits me on the desk. Marcus then grabs my arm and takes off the bandages, _oh god, not this!_ Marcus takes his knife and I brace myself for the pain. _Wait, I'm not part of this tribe anymore … I don't have to let him do this!_ I pull my arm away and kick Marcus hard in the stomach. I jump up off of the desk and run towards the door. But Marcus catches me by the scruff of my neck and throws me to the floor where he proceeds to kicking me. Everything goes black.

 **Maria**

Everyone is pacing around in the barn. Will is stood with Sam by the doors, keeping a lookout for any attacks from the Black Skull tribe. I heard not so long ago that Connie and Kay have both been kidnapped by those ruffians. I look back to Cornell who is explaining our plan, "We will distract the enemy while the Raptor tribe will swoop in and save Connie and Kay. In order for this to work, we have to keep the enemy distracted for as long as possible!". Owen and some of his men are stood beside of Cornell, nodding to express that he understood. Phil walks into the barn, a grappling hook in his hand. "This should get you lot into their base", Phil says as he hands the grappling hook to Owen. Fred who has been stood silently for the whole time suddenly confronts Cornell, "I don't think that the Raptors alone should go in the base!". _What? Is there something wrong?_ Cornell seems to ponder over this. Stephanie nods in agreement, "Fred's right … for once", she says to Cornell, "Connie and Kay are ours we should send at least two people from Terror Birds to go with the Raptors!". Cornell nods, "Yes, but who?". Sam is about to turn round and volunteer when Phil shakes his head, "Sorry but it's best if you are part of the distraction!". Sam's face is full of rage, "Kay is my sister, I have to be there for her!". Phil raises his hands to try and calm Sam, "Please jus-". Sam grabs Phil by the neck of his shirt and rammed Phil into the wall. "I don't take orders from you, Ex-Skull!", Sam snarls, "I WILL NOT LOSE MY SISTERS TO THEM!". Cornell walks over quickly and pulls Sam off of Phil. "Listen Sam. Phil doesn't mean what you think", Cornell explains calmly to Sam, "The Black Skulls know that Kay is your sister, they also know that you're with us. They will expect you to be with us and know that something is going on when you're not there!". Sam seems to calm down and steps away from Phil, "But I need to be there for her!". Cornell nods, "You will be, when she is out of that place, she's going to want her brother by her side!". Sam looks away in defeat and Cornell looks up at Fred, "They don't know you so you should go with them". Fred nods and turns to Will who has been staring angrily out of the barn, "Will". Will turns, his eyes piercing through any who stands in his way … _I've never seen him like this before._ "You should come with me", Fred says which seems to surprise Will, "Your good at blending into the shadows and with that weapon of yours", Fred points to the chain and spiked ball attached to Will's belt, "You'll be able to protect the two girls way better than I can". Will smiles at Fred before nodding and turning to Cornell, "We can do this!".

 **Kay**

Gregory came back not so long ago and is now pacing around me. I'm trying to block out his voice but the stinging pain in my back is slowly seeping away at my energy. "You know it will be way less painful if you do as I say", Gregory reminds me as he circles around me, the whip has been cast aside and now he is trying to torture me mentally. "And way less painful for Connie too!", _Connie? Are they torturing her too?_ Gregory smirks as he sees my reaction. He slips his hand down the back of my trousers. I kick back and hit his knee. "Ah!", Gregory exclaims before hitting me hard in the back. I hiss in pain as my scars burn and fresh blood trickles down my back. "And let's not forget your sweet brother, that fool is practically dead as soon as I say the word!". Fear starts spike through me, _are there still spies at the tribe?_ Gregory slips his hands up my vest top and brings his lips to my ear, "Be good and I'll make sure their safe!". I stay perfectly still as Gregory's hands fall down to my trouser zip, _I can't let them die!_ My zip is undone and trousers pulled down to reveal my pants. "I like asses like yours!", Gregory laughs and I can hear some rustling behind me. I bite my lip, trying to hold back tears. _I bet this is a nightmare!_ I try to picture myself somewhere else, in the hope that everything around me will disappear, that I'll wake up in Will's arms … but it doesn't. Gregory is about to pull down my pants when the door opens and a young man with ginger hair and black eyes walks into the room. "Gregory?", the man asks as he spots us, "Your meant to be beating the prisoner, not pleasuring her!". Gregory let's out an annoyed sigh before pulling away from me, "Jesus! Can't I have any fun around here?". I hear someone doing up there zip and Gregory moves past me and out the room. The ginger haired man walks up to me and helps me to pull up my trousers. "I'll make sure that you get a break", the man says on standing up, "I'm sorry but I can't stop Gregory from hurting you. Least I can do is give you food and water". _This one doesn't seem to be like the rest … maybe he was taken in by the Black Skulls like Sam?_ "Thank you", I say gratefully, "Did you perhaps know someone by the name of Sam?". The man's eyes widen, "Yeah, I knew him. We used to be friends … until the Boss kicked him out". I smile slightly, "I thought you might". The man goes and replaces the chair underneath me before loosening the rope slightly so that I could sit down and rest my arms. "Do you know, him?", the man asks on returning to me. I nod, "Yeah, he's with Terror Birds now". The man smiles, "I heard he has a sister over there, I wonder if they're alright?". I try to keep my smile up but it wobbles slightly at the thought of my brother, "I think Sam is alright … as for his sister-". I trail off and the man looks confused, "Is she alright?". When I don't answer the man looks me over before exclaiming, "Oh dear god!". I look back up and try to hold back tears, "I will be alright, they'll come for me and Connie! I know they will!". The man looks behind him and quickly closes the door, "You shouldn't say those kinds of things so freely", he says, "it'll get us both into trouble". I look down at my, _this man knew my brother and doesn't seem to want to hurt me … so maybe he can help?_ I look back up at the man, "What's your name?", the man smiles kindly, "My name is Tiger, my family was hunted down when I was just a baby. My mother and father killed by the Boss's father, Cedric. Cedric raised me as his bastard, treated me like his own child. Marcus didn't like thinking of me as his brother and was always bulling me. Now that he's Boss, he still looks down on me but hasn't took the privileges that Cedric gave me". _Oh … so he stands with the Black Skulls!_ I suddenly tense up, _there is no way he'll help me!_ Tiger seems to notice my sudden tenseness and circles around me. "I'll try to bandage your back up, it might put Gregory off of using that whip!", I feel gentle hands on my back and soon enough my back didn't feel as bare. "Thank you, Tiger", I say, avoiding eye contact. "No problem", Tiger says this and I see some sadness in his eyes. Tiger looks up at me and gives a little smile, "The Black Skulls weren't always like this ya' know". I meet his eyes as he starts to explain his past, "Originally the Black Skulls hunted down criminals who terrorised tribes and wanders. We were a little like assassins. But when Cedric died his son took over and started to run things a little differently". "What do you mean?", I ask, "Now we request large amounts of money for our services. We used to take whatever offer the requestor made", Tiger explains. Tiger sighs before he speaks, "The funniest thing too, in Cedric's will, I was meant to take over this place". I stare at Tiger in astonishment, "Then why is Marcus the boss?". Tiger shakes his head, "He took the will and hid it away so that no one would find out". "But you could have told someone, you knew-", Tiger cuts me off whilst shaking his head, "Who is going to believe the bastard of a dead man over a control freak?". _But he's the true heir to Black Skull tribe …_ "join us". My comment throws Tiger off guard, "I'm sorry, what?", I stare at him with confidence, "Join us! We'll all defeat the Black Skull tribe together, and you'll be able to take over build the place back up to what it used to be!". Tiger thinks about it for some time, "Yes, but I'll have to remain here, I could warn you about any attacks!", there is a hopeful gleam in Tiger's eyes. I smile and nod before Tiger helps me to eat and drink.

 **Connie**

I wake up once more, I'm lay on the floor and Marcus is nowhere to be found. I slowly get up and look around, my stomach and head hurts terribly but I force myself to walk towards the door. But as I walk away from Marcus's desk I spot something. It's a old piece of paper that has some writing on it. I pick it up and start to read;

 _Last Will and Testament of Cedric Skull_

 _Know all persons by these presents:_

 _That, I, Cedric Skull of the Black Skull tribe, being of sound and disposing mind and memory, and not acting under duress, menace, fraud or the undue of influence of any person whomever, do make, publish and declare this is my Last Will and Testament._

 _I hereby declare that my family_

 _consists of: My son, Marcus Skull, my adopted son, Tiger Skull, my brother Zared Lobo._

 _I hereby direct and order that all just debts for which proper claims are filed against my estate, and the expenses for my last illness and funeral, be paid off by my executor as soon after my death is practicable, provided, however, that this direction shall not authorize any creditors to require payment of any debt or obligation prior to its normal maturity in due course._

 _I direct that all estate expenses, inheritance, and other taxes and interests or penalties thereon imposed by the reason of my death, whether or not attributable to property passing under this Will and whether or not the same would otherwise be payable by my estate or by a recipient of any such property, to be paid and discharged by my personal representative out of the residue of my estate with no right of reimbursement for the Recipients named in the residuary clause of the Will._

 _I give, devise and bequeath unto:_

 _My dear brother, Zared, the book our mother cherished so dearly, it should be passed on down through your family to remember her. I also give a quarter of father's fortune to Zared, please make good use of it. To my son, Marcus, I give Foral, the bear who has been so loyal to me through the years, take good care of him. For Tiger, I give the ownership of the Black Skull tribe, it will no doubt turn into an empire within your hands. I also give an amulet, it is stored in a small box within my office. Please read the letter too. The ownership of the Black Skull tribe comes with my armour and sword passed down from my father and his father, Tiger is to have it. The rest of the fortune and weapons from my armoury is to be divided between my two sons._

 _Cedric Skull_

 _Who is Tiger?_ I think to myself, the door opens and I stuff the paper into my pocket, _this might be useful!_ Marcus enters the room holding a cup of water and a plate with a sandwich on it. He ignores me and puts the food and drink on his desk before sitting down. I stand there for awhile, _the door is open so I can easily run out, but Marcus would definitely catch me!_ I bet Marcus is trying to see if I will run off, test how loyal or afraid I am of him. My mind drifts back to the paper I had found, _Marcus isn't supposed to be in charge of this place, I need to find out who this Tiger is and tell him!_ Marcus looks up at me and clicks his fingers. I give him my attention. "Come here", I hesitantly walk over, making sure to keep my distance incase he had his knife. Marcus grabs my arm and pulls me over to him. I gasp as I am suddenly pulled towards the dreaded man. Marcus points at the sandwich, "Eat it!". I don't want to eat anything Marcus gives me but he'll probably beat me again if I don't do as I am told. I gingerly pick up the sandwich and take a bite out of it. I almost choke when the terrible taste of liver tickles my tongue. I place the sandwich back on the plate and force myself to swallow. I look up at Marcus who glares down at me, "All of it", he says in a dark voice. I back away from Marcus and the sandwich, _I don't want to eat something that disgusting!_ Marcus lunges forwards and grabs ahold of my throat, lifting me up off of the floor. I instantly start to struggling to breathe. "Please-", I beg, my hands gently trying to pry away his hands. Marcus gives me that sick psycho smile of his. "You've been a bad girl!", Marcus growls, "Now you'll pay!". I close my eyes as the darkness starts to cloud my vision. I hear metal against stone and open my eyes. I can just about see three men climb up through the window. I am dropped to the floor as Marcus turns to face them. I wince as I hit the floor hard. I look up and realise that Fred and Will are stood there, the third man is one I remember seeing I'm the Raptor tribe. "What are you doing here?!", Marcus growls at Will and Fred. Will ignores Marcus and turns to me, "Connie? Are you alright?". I nod and try to race over to him. Marcus catches me and pins me under his arm. Fred steps forward, anger in his face, "Let her go!". Marcus laughs, "She is my property, why should I?". I struggle in Marcus's grip, "Let me go!". Marcus stares down at me with a glare that makes my blood go cold. "What was that?", Marcus growls, "You ungrateful brat!". Marcus raises his fist to beat me. A great thud followed by Marcus letting me go and falling to the floor headfirst. I look up and see a man with ginger hair and black eyes. "So much for staying and acting as a spy!", the man sighs before turning to Fred, Will and the other man, "Sam's sister, Kay, she's in the basement". Will is about to start walking when the ginger man stops him briefly, "You'd better hurry, I saw Gregory heading that way when on my way up here!". Will takes off as Fred picks me up and hands me to the other man. The ginger man follows but stops by the window, "I'll keep guard for when Marcus wakes up". Fred nods and chases after Will. I cling to the Raptor tribe man's back as he climbs down a rope leading to the bottom of Black Skull base.

 **Kay**

Gregory is back. He circles around me … looking for a weakness … a way in. _I can't let him!_ I look over my shoulder, refusing to let Gregory out of my sight. Gregory had moved over to the wall where the rope is tied to the hook and is now readjusting the rope. My hands are pulled up, forcing me to stand. Gregory walks over and takes away the chair. I ready myself to kick my attacker but he catches me off guard by kicking my legs. I am knocked off my feet. Gregory catches my legs and pins them on his hips. I thrash about in an attempt to get free but Gregory unzips my trousers and pulls them down to my knees. Gregory strokes my thigh and grins at me evilly, "You know you want it!". _No, his hands feel wrong!_ _I want Will!_ The door is suddenly thrust open and Gregory turns to see who it is. I gasp in surprise when I spot Will stood right behind Gregory, his face filled with rage. Gregory is pulled off of me and thrown backwards. Will is stood in front of me, protecting me from the man with reddish eyes that stares at Will with bewilderment. Gregory stands up, "What? You want in on the fun?", he says in a amused tone. Will continues to death stare Gregory, "I am here to take my girlfriend away from you and this place", he growls. Gregory's eyes go wide, "Wait, you one of the Terror Birds!". Will smirks and takes something off of his belt, "Yep, and you're in a heap of trouble!". I watch as Will takes a chain with a large metal spiked ball on the end of it. Gregory steps back, his face is filled with fear. But before he can run a large plank of wood is swung round the back of his head. Gregory falls to the floor unconscious and Fred is now stood with a small smile on his face. Will drops the chain and ball and turns to me. I can see all of his emotions, anger, sadness, worry … love. I can't help but let the tears escape as Will pulls up my trousers and unties my hands. I fall into Will's arms as he swoops me up off of my feet. "I'm sorry", I cry into Will's shoulder, _I couldn't stop him …_ "It's my fault for not protecting you!", Will says firmly. "But I should have been strong enough … where's Connie?", I ask, panic rising through my body, "Don't worry, she's safe!", Will assures me as he carries me out of Black Skull's basement. Fred leads the way, making sure each hallway and staircase is clear for Will and me to follow him through or up. We reach a room and Fred opens the door. I stare in surprise when I see Tiger standing by the window, "Hurry, he was stirring a minute ago!". Fred nods and races over to the window, "I'll go down first, make sure there ain't any surprises down there!". Fred climbs out the window and down a rope attached to a hook that is snagged on the stone window. Tiger smiles at me and Will, "I won't be able to stay here … hopefully I will be able to take you up on your offer though". Will puts me down and let's me climb onto his back before climbing out of the window and down the rope. We reach the bottom where Fred is waiting for us and look up. But instead of climbing down Tiger unhooks the role and chucks the grappling hook down to us. "But Tiger, what about you?", I ask him. Tiger smiles down at me, "I'll catch up!", he yells just before he disappears. I stand back on my feet only for Will to pick me up again as he carries me, following Fred who races off.

 **Cornell**

We're all back at Terror Bird tribe. Connie and Kay have returned safely and we're all sat in the kitchen in silence. Ever since they got back they have been in their rooms … recovering from their ordeal. I sigh as I think of all the bruises Kay has on her back, _along with those scars._ I feel something brush against my shoulder and turn to see Stephanie resting her cheek on me. I smile and pull her into a hug. "We should contact the Carno tribe, tell them about what happened, they will like to know about the spies!", Phil says across the table. Will is sat silently beside him. Fred let's out a loud sigh, "They're going to be coming for revenge now … aren't they?". I look down at my hands, feeling a tinge of guilt. Sam, who is sat next to me, nudges me gently in the elbow. I turn and meet my son's gaze, I feel reassured, and yet urged to tell something. I sigh once more, _they'll find out sooner or later … might as well be now anyway._ I look towards Stephanie and gently pull away from our hug. "There is something I need to tell you", I say when Stephanie gives me a questioning look, "The Black Skull tribe has declared war … against us". Maria who was sat quietly beside Sam let's out a surprised gasp. Fred looks confused and Stephanie goes white in the face. Everyone is silent for awhile until someone unexpected breaks the silence, "Who knew about this?". I turn and see Kay staring angrily at me, _how long was she stood there?_ I shake my head, "Just me, Will, Sam, Phil and Matt". Kay's eyes transfix on Sam, "You knew?". Sam looks away in guilt, "It wasn't a happy topi-", "You knew and didn't tell me?!", Kay cuts Sam off. Will stands up, "Please, Kay. It was just after Christmas, we didn't want to spoil the mome-", "And you!", Kay turns to Will, "You're just as bad as my brother!". Kay turns on her heel and runs off down the hallway. I hear door slam and wince, _that could have gone better._ I feel Stephanie squeeze my arm and turn to see her with teary eyes, "It's okay, she's just a little overwhelmed". _I hope so …_ Stephanie kisses my shoulder and I pull her into a hug … _we will get through this!_


	21. Chapter 18

Cornell

Everyone is racing around the house. Men who my father has sent and trusts with his life, each and every one of them are working hard to get get this place secure. I feel bored just watching but I need to keep a careful eye on Kay, Connie and Sam. Connie and Kay especially since Connie loves to check up on Lightning and Kay will most likely try to help out with the building. Sam is more controllable since I've got him training in my office. Stephanie is cooking in the kitchen to keep our newly found workers fed and hydrated. Last time I checked Fred was feeding Theasus and Lightning and Will is currently searching for Kay. As much as I want to tell him where she is, I think it'd be best to give her some time to herself. Connie is in the basement with Maria, Jeffrey and Ribbon so she should be occupied for a little bit. It's at night I'm worried about … she's so quiet that I don't even notice her leave. I'll just have to get some men to take it in turns patrolling around her's and Kay's rooms. I sigh deeply and go to the kitchen to find Stephanie, she is probably a little tense. Stephanie is slaving away at the grill, making some kind of soup. She turns and sees me, "Hello big guy", she says with a smile. I smirk at her, "Hello my bad girl, you okay?", Stephanie shrugs, "I'm good, but these people sure do eat a lot though, huh?". I walk up behind Stephanie and place my hands on her hips, "Need some help?". Stephanie smirks, "Well I have got a bit of an ache in my neck", she admits. I press my lips against her neck as I repeatedly kiss Stephanie who giggles at my touch. "Better?", I ask as Stephanie abandons the soup to turn and kiss me on my lips. "Much better, thanks", Stephanie says when our lips part. I stroke Stephanie's cheek with my thumb, this war better end soon! Three men enter the kitchen and Stephanie goes back to her soup. I decide to go and check on Sam and leave the kitchen to go to my office. On my way I see Kay walking down the hallway with Will hot on her heels, "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you, alright?", Kay ignores Will and instead quickens her pace. I want to watch and see what happens but I need to make sure that Sam isn't destroying my office.

Kay

I walk past the kitchen and towards the door, unable to shake off Will. I'm not allowed anywhere past the very front of the house so as soon as I walk the door I'll need to try and run round the back without being seen. A hand grabs my arm and pulls me into a familiar embrace. I try to pull away from Will as he hugs me tightly, "Please, you can't ignore me forever, Kay". I refuse to answer as I thrash about, "Come on, I'm sorry, I've told you over and over. I didn't tell you because it was Christmas and I didn't want to ruin it for you". I stop thrashing about as I realise that Will is telling the truth, taking a big sigh I gently push Will away. This time Will let's go, I can see a hint of tears in his eyes, "I'm still mad at you!", I huff before I walk past him to go back to my room. Will breathes a sigh of relief as I walk past which I can't help but smile at. No matter how much I try … I really can't stay mad at Will! Will follows close behind me as I walk up to my room but on the way I spot Sam looking around. "Hey, Kay!", my brother yells with a smile when he spots me. I race over and he then grabs my hand before leading me off down the hallway. I look over my shoulder to see Will right behind me, our eyes meet and I look away as he smirks. He's doing it on purpose! I am led to Cornell's office where Cornell is waiting with a frown on his face, eyes full of doubt. "I brought her, Cornell!", Sam says in triumph as we approach Cornell. Cornell looks up and smiles quickly, "Good, come on then!". The four of us step into Cornell's office and I see that Maria and Connie are already there. "So why are we here?", Maria asks on seeing us step in, "Because I need to speak to each of you", Cornell explains. Will slips his arm around my shoulder which I shake off instantly. "The war isn't far off and we need to be ready, I'll have you all inside the house during the entire thing but there is always the slight chance that the enemy could find a way inside!", Cornell looks down at Connie who looks slightly scared, "I won't let this happen but there is always the possibility so I need each of you prepared!". Sam raises his hands to show that he is wearing spikey knuckle dusters, "I already chosen my weapon!", he says happily. Kay watches Maria gingerly look through the weapons and pick out a simple close combat knife. Connie steps up and looks through the lot. Cornell instantly shows his discomfort with Connie being so close to the boxes of weaponry. I smile as she picks up a long spear and moves into a more open space to wield it about a few times. The movements are so quick and precise as she stabs the air that I can tell she has had much experience with a spear. Cornell sighs deeply and turns to me. I realise he is waiting and quickly go over the the boxes. Out of all the weapons the ones that catch my eyes are the dual machete knives. I pick them up and examine them, black leather hilt and the most shiny blades I have ever laid eyes upon. I instantly search around for the belt and at the same time find two other objects along with it at the bottom of the box. I pull out a compound bow and a bunch of arrows, all made of dark silver. Cornell smiles at me before nodding, "Stephanie also wants to see you all in her room for some new clothes". Me, Connie, Sam, Maria and Will all walk out of Cornell's office and down the hallway towards Stephanie's room. Stephanie opens her door when I knock and lets us all in. "Okay, I think Maria first!", Stephanie says happily as she drags Maria to the center of the room and begins to take very quick measurements. Maria stands there looking very confused which makes me smile slightly. In a matter of moments, Stephanie has Maria stood with a small pile of clothing in her arms, "It was tricky but I think you'll like what I've picked out for you!". Maria mutters a very quiet thanks before walking out of Stephanie's room and out into the hallway. Next is Will who is straight away given a pile of clothing, "I already sorted out yours and Sam's clothing so you can both go get changed!", Stephanie says smugly as the two boys walks out with their new clothes. "Come on Kay, let's get you kitted up!", Stephanie says in a sing song voice that makes me smirk. I step into the center of the room and Stephanie holds a bunch of different trousers and tops against my body. From this she picked out some dark hide bottoms and a dark blue top with long sleeves. Stephanie then scatters around with shoes until she settles down on a pair of ankle high boots which are made from dark hide. Afterwards Stephanie adds some silver shoulder guards, knee guards and elbow guards to the pile in my arms. "Thanks Stephanie!", I say as I make my way out of the room. I smirk as I watch Connie's horrified expression as Stephanie walks over with a puffy pink dress that is covered in little pink bows. "Good luck, Connie!", I laugh before running off to my room.

Connie

Kay is evil, abandoning me like this! Stephanie has made me try on so many awful dresses that I have lost count! I sigh as Stephanie walks towards me … but where's the dress? This time she is holding a dark green top and brown puffy bottoms. A green and brown belt is thrown over her shoulder and there are ankle high boots under her arm. Stephanie helps me to dress and I soon find myself smiling at how I am dressed … it feels so comfortable! I allow Stephanie to dress me and then pick up my spear which Cornell gave me, "Thanks Mom!", I say with a cheeky grin before running out of Stephanie's room. I hear Stephanie giggle to herself as I head down the hallway towards the kitchen since that's where everyone will be. It is at this exact moment that I hear it … war drums. I lose the sound of my heart momentarily as I recognise the beat … the Black Skulls. I race towards the kitchen to find Kay very pale in the face and looking very angrily out the window. Kay is wearing a baggy white blouse, a black corset with silver lace at the back, a pair of skinny black leggings and a pair of black ankle high boots. I stand beside my sister and follow her gaze … just in the distance I can see the Black Skulls, tons and tons of black armoured men with swords, guns and spears. "We are going to take them down, aren't we?", Sam asks eagerly as he watches the approaching fight. Will shakes his head, his arm wrapped around Kay's shoulder, "we were told to stay here". Sam looks disappointed as our men line up and turret guns are manned. Fred and Maria come into the kitchen, Fred looking disterbed and Maria looking frightened. Fred is holding Maria's hand and looks to be comforting her. Kay grabs my hand and smiles reasuringly at me. A small smile creeps across my face before turning back to face the window. We will be alright, won't we?


	22. Chapter 19

Connie

It has been only a few minutes and already the war is in full swing. I can see a lot of the Carno tribe men falling and a lot of the Black Skull tribe falling too. I hope we win! Kay's grip on my hand tightens as she watches with desperation in her eyes as Stephanie and Cornell fight their ways through the masses of Black Skull men. Sam looks impatient as he wants to join the fight. Will seems to have released himself to his more confident self as he holds Kay close and watches for any signs of someone breaking into the house. Fred has one arm around Maria who is shaking nervously into his chest. All I can do is watch helplessly as we are attacked by the same people who killed so many innocents. No! I want to help! Just as I think this the back door is smashed open and I am pushed behind Kay whilst Sam, Will and Fred all rush to defend the door. At first all is silent, except for the yelling of men being cut down in the distance. All of a sudden I hear the sound of a man cackling, I know that voice! "Oh Connie?", a sing song voice calls out, the voice haunts me as that dreaded man rounds the corner and stands in the doorway with an evil smirk on his face. The leader of the Black Skulls smirks down at me, his green eyes going straight through Kay and burning my skull. I shiver out of fear as I cling to Kay's arm. Kay responds by taking the knife out of her belt and brandishing it in front of her, "Stay back!", she says through gritted teeth. Marcus steps through the door, a blooded sword in his left hand. Fred jumps from one side of the door and attempts to wrestle the sword off of Marcus. However Fred is flung aside with one blow to the head. Maria let's out a cry and rushes to aid Fred. Will, who has got ahold of Stephanie's emergency bat, raised the bat above his head and brought it down on the monster's back. The nails went straight into flesh and as Will tries to pull away, the beast's hand went back an swiped him away, Will went flying just as Fred had done and Marcus pulls the bat out of his back which he uses to pin Will by his clothing to the floor, preventing Will from interfering. Sam lunges forwards, swinging quick and powerful blows with his knuckles dusters. However all blows are dodged and Sam is thrown away as if he is as light as feather. Maria stands up and brandishes her knife with shaky hands. A laugh that makes my head hurt and blood run cold rings out, "You should be proud, not many are able to get close enough to even touch me!". Kay grows tense, she wants to have a go at him, show him her wrath … but she can't, it's my fault, it's all my fault. I'm in the way and if I wasn't here in the first place then none of this would have happened! Tears start to form in my eyes and I lose the grip on Kay's hand, "I-if I come-", I begin to stutter. The horrid creature fixes his green eyes on me, "- will, you let them l-live?", I finish my sentence. A disgusting smirk fills his face and it is now that I realise that this thing is no longer a person but a blood thirsty monster. "I'll make a deal", it says with the creepiest laugh I have ever heard in my life, "I'll leave them all alive … except this one", the monster turns and raises his blooded sword over the struggling body of … Will! I hear the protests of Kay who lunges forward to stop the sword but I can't make out what she says since I too am lunging forwards, grabbing the beast's top and pulling him down to the floor. Will gets free and pounces up to tackle the horrid creature down. Soon Fred and Sam are all up and pounding the life out of the monster who has tortured both me and Kay for so many years. "Wait!", I cry out, Maria comes over to me and wraps shaking arms around me, "Don't look Connie", but I refuse as Kay also comes to stand by me, "Don't kill him!". Sam looks up, "Connie, this man has killed so many innocents, including your parents!", I gulp, "I know, but killing him will make us as bad as him!", I look down at the monster now glaring at me in desperation, "Besides, death is too good for him". Sam let's out a deep sigh before nodding at Will who kicks the dreaded beast in the face which knocks him out cold. Fred ties the horrid creature up with some rope and then drags him into the corner. "It's not safe in the house anymore", Kay states, "We'll have to go out the back door and join the battle, the Raptors should be here soon so it'll be a victory!". I follow everyone outside where we are instantly ambushed by Black Skull tribes.

Kay

Will and I part ways, Connie soon races out of sight and I have to cut down Black Skull after Black Skull using my machete knife until I catch sight of the little girl again. Connie is stabbing at her foes legs, dodging their attacks before immobilising them. I'm impressed by how well she is fighting, though she shouldn't be fighting at all! I race in and cut down any remaining Black Skulls. Connie smiles up at me, "Thanks", she says before stabbing at an incoming Black Skull who attempts to hack at my head. The spear gets stuck in the man's shoulder as he reals back, crying in agony. "You little bi-", he doesn't have chance to finish his shout as I elbow his throat, silencing him. "Thanks Connie", I say, slightly embarrassed by how I was taken off guard. Connie smirks and races off round the front of the house to join Cornell and Stephanie in whatever fight there is left. I turn and see Will running up to meet me. I'm still angry at him! With this thought in my mind I turn and chase after Connie. Maria has run down to the basement and Fred has went to make sure she's alright. Sam got excited and went nuts with his knuckle dusters and is way ahead of us. I round the corner and catch up with Connie who dives under the legs of a Black Skull and swings the long stick of her spear against the one leg of the Black Skull. Meanwhile Connie brings her elbow up sharply to meet her foe's other calf. The Black Skull toppled over, cursing as he hit the ground. I race over and kick the guy hard in the head so that he falls unconscious. Connie carries on, stabbing, dodging and running to join Cornell and Stephanie. I turn to see where Sam is and find myself shoved down to the ground by the shoulder of a certain Black Skull I wish I never knew … Gregory. I look up at him with an angry expression on my face. The twisted grin makes me shiver but also fuels my rage at the same time. "Hello, bitch", Gregory says with fake friendliness. I say nothing as I go to sand up to beat the hell out of him. "Not so fast, I don't believe we finished our little conversation before, now did we?", Gregory uses his foot to kick me back down. I grab my machete knife and try to stab at his legs and feet, "Get off of me you pedofile!", I yell. However, my knife is kicked away with hardly any effort as Gregory leans down and rests his boney knees on my ankle and leg. I imeadiently cry out as sharp pain emits from my leg and ankle, more so from my ankle. "This pain feels good right?", Gregory asks evilly, his hands fall to my trousers and I thrash around to stop him from violating my body. But before Gregory can do any harm, he is kicked aside by someone strong. I look up to see that Will is stood over me protectively. "Keep your hands off of my girl!", Will growls as I try to stand. Gregory stands up and scoffs before taking out a shotgun and aiming it at Will, "And just what are you going to do, Lover boy?". Panic fills me as I try to help Will by getting my bow and an arrow but I stumble on my hurt ankle and end up hugging Will's back as a source of support. Will seems unfazed as he takes his spiky ball and chain from his belt and gives it a few swings. Though Will is short, he is quite strong and this shows a lot as he skillfully swings the ball and chain, smashing it down on Gregory's shotgun, narrowly missing his head. Gregory freezes in fear as his shotgun lands on the ground, smashed to tiny pieces. The wretched man cowers under Will's deathly glare as he pulls the ball and chain back, wrapping it loosely around his hand in only a few swift movements as he prepares for another attack. "I'm going to kill you, that's what I'm going to do!", Will states, rage in his voice as well as his eyes. However Gregory runs off before Will can clobber him. Will goes to chase after Gregory but remembers that I am holding on to him for support and turns to wrap his arm around my waist. I am pulled close to Will, being held up with his hand supporting my back. "Are you okay?", Will asks, his eyes searching mine, "Yeah", I answer, melting away from just how loving, protective and caring my boyfriend is. Will smiles and kisses my lips lightly. I kiss him back, resting my hands in Will's hair as he pulls me deeper and deeper into him. When he pulls away he looks at me longingly, "Promise to give me more later?", he asks. I nod, "I promise", Will carries me over to the house where he stands before me, protecting me from any Black Skulls.

Maria

I search through my stacks of paper on my desk, it has to be here somewhere! "What are you looking for?", Fred asks me, god that voice! I don't dare to look at him incase it takes my mind even more off topic, "Something that Connie gave me after we rescued her and Kay from the Black Skulls". I can't even see his face but I just know that he is pulling one of his super-adorable-and-confussed faces. "Why does it matter?", Fred questions further, "Because it's proof that Marcus isn't the true leader of the Black Skulls, it means a quick and sure victory plus prevention of any future wars between our tribes", I explain. "Then why not find it later when the war is over?", Fred asks. I look up this time, my eyes meeting those sharp, heart melting brown eyes that only Fred owns. I feel my heartbeat increase in speed and struggle to find my words, "B-because it m-might help to end the w-war, sooner". Fred doesn't notice my stammering wreck of a sentence and looks thoughtful instead. I sigh and look away before pulling out a piece of paper from my drawer, "Found it!". Fred comes to stand by me to get a better look at the paper, I can feel his hot breath on my neck and his chest is so close … so warm. Pull it together Maria! Focus on what's important right now! I mentally slap myself before joining Fred with examining the paper. "Last Will and testament?", Fred says as his eyes skim down the paper. I nod, "Yeah, and it says here that our good friend, Tiger Lobo, is the heir to Black Skull tribe. Meaning that Marcus is posing as the leader!". Fred nods his understanding before spinning round and pointing his rifle at the doorway to the basement. "Fred? Is someone there?", I ask, folding the paper carefully in half and slipping into the small bag on my belt. Fred doesn't say anything as he moves forwards ever so slightly. I take out my combat knife and slip past Fred to timidly edge towards the Sarco cage. It is now that I hear it, heavy breathing, a man's breathing from what I can tell, wounded. What if it's a Terror Bird? I remember what Stephanie taught me, the same thing all the Carno tribe members were taught on their way here. I take my knife and cling the metal bars in a delicate and quiet tune. Fred recognises the tune and, like me, waits for the answering tune. I feel a cold chill run down my spine as the sound of a gun being cocked rings down the hallway outside. I go back to the Sarco cage, rapidly trying to unlock the door. Fred cocks his rifle and aims his gun at the doorway, ready for the enemy to round the corner. I open the cage door and let out a sharp whistle. Susie answers with a deep growl before pounding out of her cage. The pink bow around her neck matching perfectly with her pearly white scales. Fred looks terrified as the Sarco races out of the room and soon the horrified scream of a man reaches our ears. Fred looks up at me, "I didn't know you had a pet crocodile!", he says, a hint of relief in his voice. "Well now you do", I say, a little embarrassed. Fred comes over to me and grabs my hand, "And that was smart, with the Terror Bird tune, I mean". I smile gratefully at Fred before mumbling my thanks.

Sam

I beat down Black Skull after Black Skull as I make my way towards the barn. If I let out Theasus and Lightning then they'll make their ways to Kay and Connie plus scare away a lot of these bone heads. Wow did I just tell myself a joke? I laugh to myself as I open the door to the barn and rush in. Theasus is already fidgeting in his pen, trying his best to get out. I open his pen gate and he rushes out. I watch the raptor charge incoming Black Skulls before going to Lightning's pen. Lightning looks glad as I let him out. He flies off to find Connie. I turn around to leave the barn to find a gun smashed into my face. I fall to the ground only to get back up. Geez, why is it always the face? However the gun is cocked and pointed down at me as the Black Skull prepared to shoot. I close my eyes tight, unwilling to watch the gun fire. "ARGH!", "NOM!", "A MONSTER!", "RUN!". I open my eyes to find Ribbon sat on a pearly white Sarco wearing a pink ribbon. I can't help but laugh as I get up, "Thanks buds!", I say as I give the Jerboa a high five. I look out the barn door and smile as I see that the Raptor tribe has now joined the war, "Let's show them how a real war is won, eh?", I ask the two. The Sarco answers by racing out of the barn and snapping at the butt of a nearby Black Skull. "Aahhh!", the Black Skull yelps. I smirk and snigger before rejoining the fight.

Connie

I feel adrenaline rush through me as I take down each enemy as fast as the last. Never killing, just immobilising, I race to find Cornell and Stephanie. The masses of Black Skulls are thick and the more I take down, the more step forwards to try and tackle me. However when I hear the sound of raptors I am scooped up off my feet and plonked down to sit in front of … Jack? I stare at him, confused. He shouldn't be able to lift me so easily, he must be really strong for a shortie! I smile at him and allow Jack to lead us through the war, charging any Black Skulls who dares to get in the way. I look up and smile when I see Lightning who swoops down, grabs a Black Skull in his claws and drops them before swooping down and doing the whole process all over again. I must be leaning too much since Jack pulls me back slightly so I am leaning against him. I spot Kay in the distance, in Will's arms who is wielding his ball and chain, threatening any who dare to attack. And Theasus is circling the both of them, taking down and chasing away Black Skulls to protect his mistress. And on his back is … Jeffrey? I smirk when I realise that he has swapped his mejoberries out for rocks. Maria and Fred come out of the house and I can see that Fred is dragging Marcus behind him. The battle slowly but surely comes to a halt and all Terror Birds retreat back to the house. Jack gets off the raptor first before helping me dismount. Cornell comes over and pulls me into a hug, "Sorry you had to be a part of this", he whispers before leading me over to Kay and Stephanie. Kay is sat down on the wall while Stephanie is taking a look at her ankle, "I think it's just sprained a little", Stephanie say with relief in her voice. She turns and face me and tears form in her eyes, "Oh, I'm so sorry you had to see all of this Connie!". I hug Stephanie and gently rub her back, "It's okay, mom". I turn to face the Black Skulls who are all death staring us. But we aren't alone, we have the Carno tribe, the Raptor tribe and the Terror Bird tribe. They are alone, we are powerful and they know it too! Maria steps forwards and holds out a piece of paper so that the Black Skull tribe can see it clearly. I recognise the colour and texture of the paper and realise it's the same one I found in Marcus's office. "Your all following the wrong leader!", she cries, a lot of Black Skulls are giving Maria evil glares, "Tiger Lobo, he is your leader, not this monster of a man!". One single Black Skull steps forward to take a closer look at the paper. After being satisfied that it is truth, the woman dark hair turns and raises her hand … a vote? A moment passes before more hands rose and soon the entire army of Black Skulls were on the same page as the woman. The dark haired woman turned and spat at Marcus who swore like his life depended on it. "Thank you", the woman says to Maria before walking away, the Black Skull tribe army at her heel. Soon the only Black Skulls left were the two ex-Black Skulls and the faker tied up on the ground. Is this it then?


	23. Chapter 20

Easter Special

Spectator

"Please!", the whiny voice of a young child comes to the ears of Jack as he walks into the house of Terror Bird tribe, his father by his side. It is Easter and the smell of chocolate is in the air. "No, the flavour is a surprise!", a more mature and womanly voice says in a laughing manner. Jack rounds the corner and enters the kitchen to see Connie and Stephanie stood at the counter. "I won't tell, just one taste, please?", Connie begs as she fixes Stephanie with puppy dog eyes. Stephanie shakes her head, "No means no, sweetie!". Connie let's out a whimper before turning and seeing Jack. The girl smiles and races over to greet her best friend, "Hi Jack!", she says happily. Jack scratches the back of his head as he takes in just how cute Connie is: a clover hairclip pinning back a small part of her fringe on the left side of her head, a long brown skirt with a clover pattern in the left corner, a green top with long thin sleeves, black tights and her favourite brown cozy boots. Owen smirks, remembering how Jack had saved Connie from the heat of battle. Since that time he and Connie have been best friends. Jack looks into Connie's bright emerald green eyes and smiles, "Hi Connie, ready for Easter are you?". Connie nods, "Yep! And so is Lightning, come on, Daffodil is about to hatch her eggs!". Jack is pulled away by the excited girl who drags him to the barn. The cozy barn had an extra level added to it just for the birds. Will and Phil are both sat waiting, "Hurry Connie!", Fred says as he urges the two children forward from behind. Connie and Jack run to where Daffodil is sat with her three eggs and Lightning. Daffodil is a newly tamed argetavis Connie found a few months ago after the war. The bird is fairly friendly and the way she shines a bright yellow under the sun's rays made Connie name her Daffodil. Connie sat down in Phil's lap and Jack stood beside the two, feeling secretly jealous of how Phil had Connie on his lap. One egg began to crack open and a small beak poked through. Halfway through its hatching process another egg began to hatch as well. Jack watches Connie's reactions carefully and smiled as she watches in awe. Although the colours of the birds are unknown just yet, Jack already can guess what names are going to be given to what bird. The first one to hatch is most likely to be called Hercules and the second one Strawberry. Jack looks at the third egg and he sees Connie's face fall. The egg remains still … no signs of life what so ever. Fred reaches over and places a hand on the egg, "stone cold, sorry Connie". Connie looks sad as she.looks imploringly at the egg, willing it to be alive. At that moment the egg suddenly cracks open and the tiniest bird ever hatched … Lucky.

Kay

I walk into the greenhouse and water my flowers, stopping in my tintoberry plant to give it some extra water. I sigh to myself as I remember all that has happened since the war. "Hey Gorgeous!", I spin round in shock as I embraced and kissed deeply on the lips. "Will!", I exclaim when I free my mouth. "The one and only!", Will says in a boastful manner. I giggle and slap his arm, "Geez, don't scare me like that!". Will gives me puppy dog eyes as his embrace becomes tighter, "But you look cute when your scared". "Uh, uh!", I poke the tip of Will's nose as if scolding a pup, "It's bad enough that Connie is using my own trick on me, I don't need you starting too!". Will laughs and let's go of me before taking my watering can and taking over the watering. "Connie's eggs have hatched by the way", Will says as I watch him from behind smirking, Geez he looks good in those skinny jeans! "Really, has she named them yet?", I ask, secretly eyeing his butt. Will nods with a smile, "Yep, Hercules, Strawberry and the smallest one we thought to be dead, Lucky". Just like her … Will spins round and flicks water at me, "Oi!", I exclaim as I cover my face with my arm. "Sorry", Will approaches me and pulls me into a hug, "Your just too hot!". Will's hot breath is on my neck and my chin on his shoulder. I laugh, "I was thinking the same about you!".

Spectator

Stephanie takes her chocolates out of the fridge and lays them all out on the counter, admiring her hard work. The mix of strawberry and white chocolate eggs as well as mint and milk chocolate bunny's impresses Cornell as he steps into the kitchen. Stephanie glares angrily at Cornell as he enters, "I said no peeking!". Stephanie tries to shove Cornell out of the kitchen but does so in vain. "Why are you so heavy?!", Stephanie says, more to herself than Cornell who just stands there with a big grin on his face. "Or maybe your just too much of a midget?", Cornell suggests as he wraps his arms around Stephanie, trapping her in an embrace. "Midget?", Stephanie questions with a raise eyebrow before her hands fall to her stomach. Cornell smirks but then notices how Stephanie's stomach has expanded slightly over the last few months. Cornell had put it down to how Stephanie was eating a lot better than how she used to but now Cornell looks nervously, trying to figure out what Stephanie could be hinting to. Stephanie smiles again and breaks free from Cornell's arms. She walks over to the fridge and takes out an chocolate egg bigger than the others. Cornell knows that the egg is meant to go in the center of the table but decides to joke about it anyway. "It's a bit big for a midget like you, eh?", Cornell says with smirk, Stephanie smiles back at Cornell. "Well it has to be if I'm eating for two", this sentence makes Cornell's jaw drop. He looks down at Stephanie's stomach and kneels down to press his ear against her. Tears form in Cornell's eyes as a happy smile spreads across his face. Cornell turns his face ever so slightly so that he can kiss Stephanie's belly before standing up and hugging her. The hug is gentle as Cornell is careful not to hurt his lover … and his newest member to Terror Bird tribe.

Jack

Will, Kay, Connie, Phil and me are all outside by the barn. The nice warm sun, not too hot as we all enjoy the fresh and cool breeze. Sam smirks evilly as he puts his test for Will in motion. He comes out of the barn with a small brown paper bag which he approaches Will with. "Hey, hold this for me please", Sam says as he hands the bag to Will. Will takes the bag and looks at Sam questioningly, "What's in it?". Sam doesn't answer and merely let's out a loud sharp whistle. Theasus comes running out of the barn and immediately chases Will who runs away screaming. "Will! Let go of the bag!", Kay shouts at her boyfriend when she realises that there must be meat inside the bag. However Will clings on to the bag as if it were his only protection as he is chased away by Theasus. Sam and Phil both bursts out with laughter as I look confused and Connie struggles not to giggle. "I have to go save him, be good, okay Connie?", Kay says to her sister. Connie nods and Kay goes to save her boyfriend. Connie turns to Sam with a smile, "Is this another test?", I smirk slightly when Sam nods with a proud expression on his face. Phil squints and gives Sam a nudge, "What is it?". Phil points off towards the house and we turn to see a kangaroo wearing a pink bunny rabbit costume. Connie smiles, "Aw, so cute!", she says on seeing the kangaroo. Phil presses a finger against his lips to tell Connie to be quiet. "What's the matter?", I ask, confused on why Phil is so quiet, "Last year that very same kangaroo came and abducted Steph". Sam shakes his head in disbelief as me and Connie looks over at the kangaroo in fear. The kangaroo knocks on the door and takes a chocolate egg, with a red bow tied around it, out of his pouch. The door opens and Fred peers out. The kangaroo throws the chocolate egg at Fred's face and it cracks open, splattering green narcotic over his entire head. "What the h-", Fred only mutters two words before falling on the ground, narcotic taking full effect over him. The kangaroo reaches down, grabs Fred and throws him over its pink, furry shoulder. Phil and Sam both laugh as the kangaroo hops off with Fred hung over its shoulder. Connie smiles but looks up at Phil, "Where is he taking Fred?". Phil shrugs, "He just leaves people in random places as far I know". "Is that what happened to Stephanie?", Sam asks with a smile. Phil shakes his head, "Nope, Cornell came and beated the hell out of the kangaroo before carrying Stephanie back home like a princess". We all laugh as Phil makes gestures about how Cornell had carried Stephanie. "Not this story again!", Connie and I jump at the sound of Cornell's voice, "You'd think he'd be tired of telling it by now". Phil smirks cheekily and stretches out his arms above him before resting them behind his head. "Nah, it's just too funny not to relive!", Phil says. Connie races forwards and allows herself to be lifted up into Cornell's arms, "Hi dad!". Cornell smiles and hugs Connie, "Hi my little clover". Connie is put back on the ground as Cornell kneels down to tell her something, "Did you know about mummy's belly?". Connie nods when she remembers how Stephanie had told her to keep it a secret. Sam and Phil both grin since they both know that Stephanie is pregnant. "So you finally found out, huh?", Sam says with mischievous grin. Cornell raises his eyebrow and stands up, "How come everybody knew except me?". Phil shrugs, "No offence or anything, your a big guy and really strong and all, but your kind of dumb when it comes to women!". Cornell looks angry momentarily but quickly calms down, "I'll get you back for that later!". Sam laughs, "It really must be the season of new beginnings!".

Spectator

Once everything has calmed down and Kay has rescued Will, the Terror Bird tribe and the Raptor tribe join up inside the house for some games. "Okay, there is an egg hunt for the children and the rest of us can have some coffee and tea while their at it", Stephanie says.as she lead the children to the front of the house. It is outside where they meet a big black quetzal wearing a black skull mask. Connie instantly freezes out of fear. On the quetzal's back is a small little house built from stone and wood. Stephanie waves her hand which confuses the little girl. A door opens and three small children jump out of the little house. It is only when Connie sees the orange hair and a familiar face that she remembers how Tiger Lobo, the new leader of Black Skull tribe, had allied with Terror Birds. Connie smiles as Tiger approaches her, "Hello Connie, it's nice to see you again", he says with a smile. Connie nods, "Yeah". Tiger looks over his shoulder at the three small children and beckons them over. The children consisted of: a young girl with short and curly blonde hair with hazel brown eyes, a younger boy with the same features as the girl and another boy with freckles, brown hair and the lightest of green eyes. "This is Jane and Jay, brother and sister as well as John", Tiger introduces Connie to each child as they come to stand by him. Connie remembers Jane from when she was at the Black Skull tribe. "Hello", the blonde haired girl says meekly, Connie smiles and steps forward, "Hello, Jane, I hope the Black Skull tribe is better now than when I left", she says. Jane nods and smiles, "Yes, thank you, Connie". Connie and the other children grabs baskets Stephanie had made and ran about in search of the hidden chocolate eggs.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Kay and Will are sipping at their coffees while Cornell fawns over Stephanie. Tiger, Phil and Sam are all talking defenses and weaponry when the door swings open and Fred comes in looking beaten up with torn clothing. "What happened to you?", Kay asks, quite confused. Will smirks when he sees Fred, "Kangaroo?", he asks. Fred nods as he walks past on his way to his room. Kay stares after Fred before turning to Will who refuses to explain. Will suddenly gets an idea and whispers something into Kay's ear who turns red as she is dragged away. "What's up with them?", Stephanie asks as she looks round at everyone else who gives her a shrug or shakes their head.

Later on in the evening, Jack, Owen and Mark are all sat at the table with the Terror Birds. A roasted dodo in the center of the table. "Well, it wasn't long ago that we was at war with the Black Skull tribe", Cornell announces as he stands up, a glass of wine in hand, "And now we have their leader here with us on Easter!". Everyone cheers and turns to Tiger who smiles. "Thank you, all of you for coming, and thanks to all of you for not telling me that my wife is pregnant!", once again everyone laughs and yells congrats at the couple. Everyone eats the meal laid out in front of them and later takes a bag each before they leave. The contents within consisting of chocolate eggs, chocolate bunnys and various other chocolatey bits. Stephanie and Cornell say goodnight to Kay before leading Connie to bed. "Okay, straight to sleep okay?", Stephanie says as she helps the sleepy girl into bed. Cornell kisses Connie on the forehead before tucking her in. Stephanie also kisses Connie on the forehead before the couple leave the room. "Goodnight sweetie", Stephanie says in the room's doorway, "Sleep tight my little Clover!", Cornell says before turning the light off, "Night mom, night dad", Connie replies sleepily before finally closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

Me

And thus is the end of Terror Birds.

Or is it?

Queue the annoying and suspenseful sound effects!


End file.
